Chapter Thirty-Seven - A Year of Transition
The week on the island, including a New Year's Eve party on the beach was a terrific break for everyone. All of the students had to spend some of each day working on their homework - especially Stewart, Teddy, and Victoire, who were loaded down with NEWT and OWL studies. They decided to leave the island early Saturday afternoon, which was early evening home time, so that they could all get a good night's sleep before taking the students to the train station on Sunday morning for the return trip to Hogwarts, although Lisa and Marcus stayed with the three younger girls, and Al until Sunday.
With the students back to school, everyone else got back to their routines. Ginny had her work in the lab, but was now also involved with helping Lisa put a wedding together, and worked with her Mum to help with the much smaller wedding that Andromeda and Robert wanted. James continued to have Harry and Al do a daily morning Quidditch practice with him focused on his goal of joining Aaron and Arianna as one of the few first year students to make the Gryffindor team and replace the outgoing Teddy at the third Chaser position. He had no doubt that he'd be in Gryffindor house at all. The rest of their days included the usual visits to the Residence and regular outings together.
January had breezed past, and Valentine's Day was quickly approaching. The Marauders Institute social committee was having their party on the Saturday night, since Valentine's Day was on Sunday this year, and the Residence was having theirs on the Sunday afternoon. Harry helped out with the gifts for the children at the Residence.
There was going to be a dance at Hogwarts on Saturday night too, so on the Hogsmeade weekend before Valentine's Day, Victoire and Isabelle were taken to Gladrags, where they chose, and were fitted for new gowns for the dance. The boys ordered roses that would be delivered in the morning on Valentine's Day, and also had corsages for the dance. Harry helped them out with the gifts for each girl, and so there were new necklaces for Victoire and Isabelle to wear to the dance that were picked out to match their gowns, and which the boys gave them a day early. This would be the last dance they'd be attending at the school with their boyfriends, since Teddy and Stewart would both be graduating, so the boys wanted to make sure it was an evening they'd remember.
Harry and Ginny skipped the Institute's Valentine's Day party. They instead went on a weekend at a new resort in Italy with Neville and Luna to celebrate their friend's fifteenth anniversary. The girls had a spa day, followed by dinner and dancing on Saturday, and they returned back home on Sunday in time for the party at the Residence.
The weekend after Valentine's Day, Gryffindor's Quidditch team won their game against Hufflepuff. Their team had scored eighteen goals in less than an hour before their Seeker caught the snitch to end the game with a score of three hundred and thirty to sixty. Ron's Cannons had nine wins and three losses by the end of February, having gone on something of a losing streak - at least for them, and were now in second place behind another strong Harpies team.
Ginny had taken two weeks off in March, and so she and Harry were at Marauders Paradise with five kids when she received a WiComm call from Victoire.
"Happy Birthday!" Ginny told her niece. "I take it you've had a pretty good day, judging by the look on your face."
Victoire laughed, and flashed her dazzling smile. "I just had to call you - Teddy gave me a promise ring for my birthday!" Ginny smiled and congratulated her. Victoire's eyes narrowed slightly, but the smile stayed in place.
"You knew!" she accused, and Ginny laughed.
"Harry and I might have helped him out a little, yeah," she admitted. "You are aware that Teddy's many gifts do not include the ability to tell the difference between the beautiful and the atrocious when it comes to jewellery, don't you?" Victoire looked confused.
"He always picks out beautiful things, Aunt Ginny," she said, and Ginny laughed again.
"I guess I've just given away a state secret by accident," she told Victoire. "No, sweetie, he's smart enough to seek expert advice - usually from Harry, and in a few cases like this one, from both of us. I really thought you knew."
Victoire laughed too. "I probably should've figured it out," she admitted. "I have been in stores with him enough times where he's pointed out some truly awful pieces before, but I always thought he was joking."
Ginny laughed again. "Nope, that sounds about right. I do hope you like the ring." Victoire nodded.
"I love it. I guess I don't need to send you the picture, though." Ginny shook her head.
"Send it - I want to see how it looks on you," she told her niece. "It must be late there, though, so you should go get some sleep too."
Victoire smiled. "I'll send the picture, then try to sleep if I can. I'll send you a letter and tell you all about my day," she promised. "Say 'Hi' to everyone. I love you!"
Ginny was still smiling. "We love you too, Victoire. Sweet dreams." Harry had been smiling the whole time she was on the call with Victoire.
"I take it she's excited about her present," he said. Ginny laughed and took his hand.
"That'd be a big 'yes'," she agreed. "I guess I shouldn't have said anything about helping Teddy with picking out the ring, though." Harry laughed.
"In her case, I don't think it'll take anything away from the moment." Ginny stood up and took his hand.
"Come on - break time is over for us. Time to get back to the kids," she told him.
The months between their vacation in March and when school was out were some of the busiest of Harry's life. Birthdays just seemed to fly by, with Teddy's eighteenth, Nicolas' tenth, Lily's eighth, and James' eleventh birthdays all seeming to just run together among dealing with all of the details of weddings, spending time at the Residence, finding time to check out the fifteen new Residences opening at the end of the school year, and all of the other things going on.
Harry and Ginny got regular updates from the kids at school, and knew they were all busy with classes. The last Quidditch game of the school year was not expected to be much of a match. Gryffindor was the only team with two wins, so they had already won the cup again, and since Ravenclaw hadn't yet won a game, they weren't expected to do very well, and it really didn't matter who won the game anyway, except that the Ravenclaw team did not want a no win season.
With the Quidditch Cup already won, it wouldn't have been a surprise if Gryffindor had come out playing flat, but they didn't, and they were scoring goals fast and furiously, so it was just a little shocking to everyone watching the game when the Ravenclaw Seeker caught the snitch, and ended the game in a rare tie, with each team scoring two hundred and ten points. That happened just a moment before Arianna sent the quaffle through one of the Ravenclaw goals that would have pushed Gryffindor's lead to one hundred and sixty.
Teddy, and everyone on the team were a bit disappointed at the tie, but couldn't really be too upset after finishing another season undefeated. They didn't have much time to celebrate, though, with NEWT's, OWL's, and exams coming up, the single night of celebrating the great season was followed by nothing but hard work getting ready for the exams.
The professional Quidditch season came to a sudden, screeching halt for the two front-runner teams, when both the Cannons and Harpies went down to defeat in the first round of the playoffs in upset losses that would now guarantee that a team other than the Cannons or Harpies would be the Champions for the first time in quite a while.
June was a flurry of activity as the final preparations were made for the two weddings. Andromeda and Robert's wedding was on June twenty-fifth - the Saturday after school was finished, and so when the Hogwarts Express pulled into the station on that Friday, Ginny and Harry were both there to pick up the kids, and whisk them off to the suit and dress fittings that were waiting for Teddy, Stewart, Victoire, and Isabelle.
Aaron and Arianna wandered the Mall with James, Al, and Lily, meeting up with the others for lunch. Aaron and Arianna also stayed with the kids that night as Harry, Teddy, and Stewart were all at the small bachelor party that Robert's best man was putting on, and Ginny, Victoire, and Isabelle were at the little gathering that her Mother was putting on for Andromeda.
The ceremony was held on Saturday afternoon at Andromeda's house, in the yard. Robert's family, and a few of his friends were in attendance, as was most of the Weasley family, some of the Professors from Hogwarts, and Andromeda's friends. Teddy was the only actual member of her family that was invited, and it was a lot of fun watching him walk her down the aisle, and he had a big grin on his face as he presented her to Robert at the start of the service. It was a simple and beautiful wedding, but Harry had to admit it was a little strange thinking about Andromeda and Robert being newlyweds. They had a casual buffet dinner outdoors, and then the happy couple made their exit, heading for a summer long honeymoon.
Lisa and Marcus were getting married the following Saturday, on July second. Megan had the week off, and was staying with Lisa for the week, and Ginny was over there for most of the week, but on Monday, she and Harry were with Susan at the Residence to have their meeting with Stewart. They'd planned the whole thing out well in advance, and they were going to have a little fun with him. When they'd all sat down, Susan began the meeting.
"Stewart, I'm sure by now that you're aware of the fact that now you've finished with school, you'll be leaving the Residence." Stewart nodded nervously.
"Harry and Ginny have told me that you'll be spending the summer travelling with them, and since you've agreed to go with them during the months that you would have available to you here while you decide what you'll be doing now that you're an adult, we'll need you to move your things out of your room so that we can make room for another child." He looked a little surprised, but again nodded, since he'd known that he would only have until the end of August at most before he'd have to leave the only place he'd ever thought of as 'home'.
"I want to congratulate you on your outstanding work at school," Susan added, "and want to wish you the best in the future." She stood up, and walked around her desk to give him a hug. "I hope you have a great time this summer. I'm sure I'll see you on the island at the end of July, but I do hope you'll stop in to visit us sometimes." Stewart nodded again, a little confused. This was going way too fast.
Harry put a hand on his shoulder. "Come on, Stewart," he told the young man. "I'll help you get your things, and we can send them to your room." Stewart nodded, and turned back to Susan.
"I really want to thank you, Susan," he told her. "If it wasn't for you and this place, I know everything would have been a lot different for me." Susan smiled, and put a hand on his cheek.
"You're welcome, Stewart," she assured him. "I'm very proud of you." The young man had tears in his eyes as he followed Harry out of the office. Ginny stayed behind to comfort Susan, who always found it hard when her kids grew up and moved away from home. Teddy was waiting for them outside, and smiled at his friend.
"Ready to pack up and get started on the greatest summer of our lives?" he asked Stewart cheerfully. Stewart smiled at him.
"Yeah, I guess, but there's a lot I'm going to miss about this place," he said. Teddy put a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder.
"We'll come back lots of times - I'm still planning on volunteering, and now we can both 'adopt' our own kids too – maybe even in time for Christmas."
That idea brightened Stewart up. "That's a great idea, though maybe we should be employed first before we do that," he told Teddy with a grin. "The girls have to go back to school in September, and I doubt that Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny would pay them to babysit us for the rest of our lives anyway." Harry and Teddy both laughed.
"You've got that right," Harry assured him, "but I don't think either of you need to worry about getting jobs when we get back from vacation - I hear you both did pretty well on your NEWT's, so I'm sure you'll have no problems getting lots of offers. Just enjoy the summer and don't worry about any of that."
They had Stewart's things packed up in a surprisingly short time - the boy was certainly more organized than Harry ever had been when he was a student. They used Translocators to send everything to his room, and then met back up with Ginny.
"Ready to go?" she asked them with a smile. Stewart looked around one more time, then nodded.
"Yeah, let's go," he answered, and Ginny gave him a one-armed hug as they walked out of the Residence.
"Before we go back to the Cottage, we have something to show you guys," she told them. Harry took Teddy's arm. "Harry will bring Teddy along," she told Stewart, and he nodded in agreement.
In the blink of an eye, he was suddenly standing in front of a pair of houses, and the first thing he noticed as he recovered from apparating, was that his little red sports car was in one driveway, and Teddy's shiny blue roadster was in the other. The second thing he noticed was that a pair of smiling girls were standing in front of one of the doors.
"Welcome home, Stewart," Ginny told him with a smile. "Welcome home, Teddy," she added when he and Harry walked up next to her, having apparated to a spot in front of the other house.
Both boys stared at her, then at Harry, and finally at their smiling girlfriends, who had also walked over to join them. Neither of them could talk, and they both just continued to looked around in amazement. Ginny nodded to the girls.
"Why don't you take the boys, and show them around their new houses?" she suggested. "Harry and I will wait out here." Victoire and Isabelle led the two young men first into Teddy's house, and then after a brief tour, for a quick tour of Stewart's house. The two places looked good beside each other, but were quite different in design.
Ginny waited nervously, Harry's arm around her waist as she waited to find out if they liked the houses she'd picked out and had built for them. When they finally came outside, both of the boys had big hugs for both of them, and told Ginny that they loved their homes.
The girls had already explained to them that the houses were just outside of Chudley, and they'd already been able to tell they were in a fairly new, and definitely upscale subdivision. Each house had a large, landscaped lot. Harry and Ginny went with the two young couples into Teddy's house, and sat down with them in the kitchen. Ginny got to do everything with the houses, so Harry was the one who got to talk finances with them. When they'd all gotten drinks, and were settled in, he started with Stewart.
"I'm sure you were confused about why Susan didn't talk to you about money earlier, since that's normally part of what she goes over with graduating students," he began, and Stewart nodded his agreement, expecting that he now knew why. Harry couldn't help but smile, anticipating the coming moments of fun. He pulled a pair of envelopes out of his pocket, and handed one of them to Stewart.
"Susan didn't go over any of that with you because Ginny and I asked her to keep the money that had been reserved for you, and use it for other children," he explained. "We set up an account for you at Gringotts, and there's a letter in there to advise you of the account, and the money we've put in it for you to help you get started, along with a copy of the deed for your house." He turned to Teddy next, and handed him the other envelope.
"We've done the same for you, Teddy," he said, motioning to that envelope, "and the deed for your house, and the letter explaining your Gringotts account are in there." Both boys looked amazed, but when they opened the envelopes and read their respective letters, Harry, Ginny, Victoire, and Isabelle couldn't help but all laugh at the shock on their faces. The boys were quickly hugging both Harry and Ginny again, and there were more tears and kisses. Finally, Harry stood up, and took Ginny's hand as she stood up.
"Why don't the four of you spend the afternoon here, and then meet us back at the Cottage for dinner," he suggested. "There's a picnic lunch made up for you that the girls brought over when they came, and you're probably all overdue for some couples only time after your last few weeks of exams."
They had all happily agreed, excited to have some time to explore their houses more completely, and hang out together. Harry and Ginny left, and appareated to the Cottage, where Aaron and Arianna had been staying with James, Al, and Lily.
"That was a lot of fun," Ginny told Harry, giving him a hug. He kissed her softly, and they both laughed when they heard James' loud 'Yuck!'.
"Can't you too ever get enough of that?" he asked them. They knew he was just kidding, but played along.
"I certainly hope not," Harry told him with a grin. "And if you're really lucky, if you ever find a Witch that can put up with you, she'll want you to kiss her like that when you're old too." Ginny laughed again, and gave her son a hug when he got to them. He actually shuddered at his father's comments.
"Good thing we haven't had lunch yet, or that thought might've made me lose it," he told his parents. Harry laughed too, and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Maybe, but I doubt you'll feel that way about it for many more years," he predicted. James smiled up at his parents.
"I certainly hope you're wrong about that, Dad," he said. Harry thought that it was incredibly good timing when Arianna just happened to meet them at the door at that specific moment, and he tried not to laugh again at the light blush on his son's face when he looked at the young girl. It was definitely not going to be too many more years at all.
The rest of the week was spent entirely on getting ready for the wedding. This was going to be a fairly big wedding, and while Harry, Ginny, and the kids, along with the Weasley family were Lisa's only 'family', Marcus had a fairly large family, and they both had a lot of friends from school, work, and the Residence. They'd reserved one of the smaller ballrooms at the Emerald City Centre for the dinner and reception, but the ceremony was held outdoors, and they had a beautiful day for the wedding.
All of the guests were all seated, and Harry was smiling broadly as he stood at the back of the rows of seats, Lisa's hand resting gently on his forearm. The music started, and the procession began with Carolyn and Brianna leading the way, followed by Lisa's two bridesmaids. Megan was next - her maid of honour, and then it was time for Harry and Lisa to walk slowly to the front.
"You look beautiful, Lisa," he whispered to her, his eyes sparkling in the sunlight. "Marcus is a very lucky man." He could see her bright smile through the veil, and she squeezed his arm.
"I love you," she told him. Harry put his hand over hers.
"I love you too," he whispered back.
When they reached the front of the rows of seating, his work was done once he had placed her hand in Marcus'. Lisa had hugged him, and then he stood aside, and watched as the couple walked the last few steps together to stand before the old Wizard who was performing the ceremony.
Harry stepped back to stand next to Ginny, and she took his hand in hers just as they were all invited to sit down. Ginny was able to keep it together through most of the ceremony, but when Lisa and Marcus exchanged the vows they'd written for each other, Harry put his arm around her, and she leaned her head against him and cried, while he fed her a steady supply of tissues.
The only twist from a regular service was the inclusion of a little 'adoption' ceremony, where Carolyn and Brianna promised to take care of, and love their adopted volunteers, and Lisa and Marcus promised to do the same for the two little girls. The guests all loved the unique wedding, and they all applauded loudly when the new couple were announced as Lisa and Marcus Allen, and the two little girls led the recessional to end the ceremony.
The guests were ushered into a reception area where they could have drinks before dinner while Lisa, Marcus, and their wedding party and family had pictures taken. Since Marcus' family was all from the United States, as were some of his friends, they all had suites at the hotel. Harry and Ginny had to hang around for the photo session, but they first did the pictures with the younger kids on both sides of the family, then let them all leave while the rest of the pictures were taken.
Megan and Marcus' best friend, and best man at the wedding had been an on again, off again couple. It had been clear to Harry and Ginny in the months leading up to the wedding that the pair were in the 'on again' mode, but from Ginny had told him that from some of the recent 'girl talks' she'd been a part of, neither one of them were looking for anything serious yet, and were happy with just dating and having fun together.
The newlyweds, wedding party, family, and all of their friends and guests were having a great time at dinner. It hadn't occurred to Harry that it wasn't uncommon for not only the bride and groom to be prompted to stand up and kiss on a regular basis during dinner, but also members of the wedding party, parents, and grandparents. He was more than happy to oblige when he, Ginny, and Marcus' parents were called to action, and apparently did it well enough to warrant a repeat demand before the meal was over. Molly and Arthur were also called to kiss, as were both sets of the groom's grandparents.
Lisa and Marcus had the first dance of the evening together, and were joined on the second song by Harry, Ginny, and his parents. The wedding party was next, and then everyone else was invited to join in. Harry and Ginny both danced most of the night, only finding time for short breaks. Harry thought he'd danced with nearly every Witch there, but his favourite dances were the father of the bride dance with Lisa, while Marcus danced with his mother, and his dances with Lily and Ginny.
He noticed that Carolyn had gotten Al out on the dance floor a few times, and his younger son had danced with Ginny too. James was trying to play it cool, but he had definitely caught the eye of several girls that were close to his age, but other than one dance with Ginny that he had grudgingly agreed to, he stayed off the dance floor completely, content to hang around and talk with his cousins and some of the other boys he'd met today. It was after midnight when Lisa and Marcus got ready to leave, and Harry and Ginny were among the last to see them off on their honeymoon.
"I guess we won't see you until the week before we go to Marauders Paradise," Lisa told them with a smile. "Thanks for, well, everything." They all exchanged hugs, and there were a few more tears.
"You two just have fun," Ginny told them. "We're going to take your two little adoptees with us for the two weeks you're gone," she added, and gave Lisa a wicked little look. "I'd say you'd be missing out on all of the fun, but I'm fairly certain that you two will be able to think of at least a few things to do that just might be as much fun." Lisa laughed, blushing a little. Looking at her new husband, she nodded.
"I don't think that'll be a problem," she agreed with a grin.
Ginny and Harry woke up the next morning to the smell of coffee and breakfast cooking. When they'd finished getting ready for the day, they went downstairs to find seven dwarves - or actually seven witches and wizards - cooking breakfast for everyone.
"Happy Anniversary!" the kids shouted together. After hugs and kisses, they were led to seats at the kitchen table, and thanks to Arianna keeping the great cooking adventure under control, enjoyed a lovely breakfast with the kids.
"Thank-you all for such a wonderful surprise!" Ginny told the kids when they'd all finished, and cleaned up. "This is a really great way to start a summer-long vacation!"
Since they'd all stayed up late at the wedding reception, they had all slept in late too, so it was already mid-morning when they finished breakfast. The kids were all sent to pack for their trip, with Aaron helping the boys, Arianna helping the girls, and Harry and Ginny left to only have to pack for themselves. They were all packed up and ready when Teddy and Stewart arrived to help them get all of the kids and luggage to the island.
Bill, Fleur, Victoire, and Isabelle were going to be meeting them on the island, so once the luggage was all sent to the different houses by Translocator, they quickly got the kids together, and left for the island using the TransPortal. Teddy and Stewart were staying at the Tonk's beach house with Aaron, James, and Al. Arianna, Carolyn, Brianna, and Lily were with Harry and Ginny. Victoire and Isabelle would be staying with Bill and Fleur, even though they officially started 'work' taking care of Teddy and Stewart this week. Harry and Ginny were able to hold the kids back long enough to have them unpack and get settled before they all put on swimsuits and headed to the beach, leaving the parents behind to work on putting together a beachside buffet lunch for everyone.
They were just getting ready to start taking everything from the kitchen to the beach when Bill and Fleur stopped by. Victoire and Isabelle had already joined the others at the lagoon, and so the two couples made quick work of getting the food and drinks to the tables at the edge of the beach, then sat in chairs and relaxed, waiting for the kids to notice that food was available - something that never took very long to happen. Victoire, Isabelle, Teddy, Stewart, and James were all out on jet-skis. Aaron and Arianna were playing on the AquaBikes with the rest of the kids, and the laughter and shouts coming from all of them echoed across the beach from the lagoon.
It was no surprise to any of the adults that James saw the food first, and made a beeline for the shore. The others followed shortly after, and lunch was followed by a lazy day on the beach and in the water. By nightfall, the younger kids were all in bed, since the time difference from home made it feel really late for them. Bill and Fleur were at their house, and Aaron had settled in for the night with James and Al. Harry and Ginny were sitting in chairs out on the lanai of their beach house, talking quietly together. They watched as Stewart and Isabelle, then Teddy and Victoire walked past them on the path toward the beach - obviously going for moonlight walks on the beach - or maybe swims in the lagoon.
"This is such a romantic place to be at night," Ginny whispered, and Harry grinned at her.
"I've noticed that quite a few times," he whispered back, and Ginny's soft laugh sent a tingle up Harry's back. They heard footsteps behind them, and turned to see Arianna step into the doorway and smile at them.
"It's not very romantic with all of these kids in the house, though," she told them with a smile. "Why don't you two grab towels and go find your own romantic little spot on the beach?" she suggested. "I'll stay here with the girls while you're gone."
Ginny got up quickly and gave Arianna a big hug, then pulled Harry to his feet. "That's a really great idea, Arianna. Thank-you!"
They went for a moonlight swim in the lagoon, and there was definitely a little snogging involved while they played in the water, and after the swim, they lay on the soft towels, snuggled close together on the still warm, sandy beach. They hadn't seen any sign of anyone else along this stretch of shoreline, so either the two young couples had gone to bed for the night, or they were somewhere else on the island.
"This has been a really great anniversary," Ginny told him with a content sigh.
Her damp hair fanned out across the white towels and Harry's arm and chest, and she closed her eyes, listening to his soft breathing, and the rhythm of his heartbeat. He held her close, and his green eyes flashed the reflected moonlight as he watched the stars shining in the gloriously clear night sky. The next thing he knew, his eyes were opening to the faint pink blush of early sunrise. Ginny was still snuggled in his arms, and they had obviously both fallen asleep right there on the beach. He gently woke her up with a tender kiss, and smiled as her eyes fluttered open, and she looked at him with those deep brown eyes that caught at his heart every time he looked into them.
"Good morning," he said softly. "I guess we better get back home before Mom - or in our case, our kids - yell at us for getting back so late, or early, or whatever you call it when you stay out all night," he told her, and Ginny laughed happily and hugged him.
"It was worth it, even if we do get in trouble," she answered with a grin.
Harry stood, and helped Ginny up. They gathered the towels up, and then walked hand-in-hand back to their home. The kids were still asleep, although Arianna had fallen asleep on one of the sofas. They had changed, and climbed into bed, hoping for another couple of hours sleep, but they'd barely closed their eyes for a half hour when they were woken to the sounds of the boys arriving, ready for breakfast and another adventurous day.
That week on the island with Bill, Fleur and the kids, was a wonderful way to start their summer-long vacation. The next week, Bill and Fleur went back home, and Harry and Ginny took all of the kids for a week at a resort in the mountains of British Columbia, Canada. The kids thought that calling a place 'Whistler' was pretty odd, but they loved the mountains and glaciers, and everything about their time in Isabelle's home country.
They all headed back home after that trip. Lisa and Marcus were back from their honeymoon, and came for dinner at the Cottage on the Sunday night before they'd be going back to work, and they took Carolyn and Brianna back home with them to stay overnight, so the two girls could tell them all about their travels before taking them back to the Residence in the morning.
Harry and Ginny were spending the week helping to get everything ready for the trip to Marauders Paradise, so Aaron and Arianna stayed at the Cottage and helped with Al and Lily, and Teddy and Stewart stayed at their own houses, and were able to spend most of the week with Victoire and Isabelle, going on their own little day trips, enjoying the freedom that having their own homes allowed them, and driving their sports cars.
This year there were going to be three weeks reserved for the Phoenix Foundation, now that there were eighty residences. The kids that were staying at the Cottage were free to make their own plans for the week while Harry and Ginny were busy. Those plans ended up consisting of a morning Quidditch practice with Aaron, Arianna, James and Al playing for at least an hour each day. They would meet Harry and Ginny for lunch - usually at the Marauders Mall, but sometimes in Godric's Hollow or at the Diner in Chudley. In the afternoons, they'd go shopping, spend the afternoon at the Residence, or go on some other afternoon adventure, followed by dinner at the Cottage.
Teddy, Stewart, Victoire, and Isabelle joined them for most of the dinners, and would then head off to find their own entertainment in the evening, going dancing in London, taking long car rides, or just spending a quiet evening together back at Teddy's or Stewart's house. The week just flew by, and it was soon time to head for Marauders Paradise.
This was going to be a different week for everyone this year. Stewart had graduated, and Carolyn was with Brianna, Lisa, and Marcus, so technically the only children that Harry and Ginny had from the Residence this time was Aaron and Arianna, who were working for Harry and Ginny taking care of the kids - although James and Al didn't need much taking care of - other than keeping James out of trouble. Lily was so happy all of the time that Arianna just loved being around her anyway.
Having the kids all taken care of allowed Harry and Ginny to help the Foundation out during the week, and they worked with Megan and Gabrielle for at least part of every day. They both loved that this gave them the opportunity to meet a lot more of the kids and volunteers from the other Residences who were here this week.
These weeks on the island for the Phoenix Foundation always seemed magical and filled with joy and wonder, and this year was no exception. They all had an amazing time, and the week was definitely over far too quickly. Their final full day on the island arrived. Harry and Ginny spent the whole day playing with the kids and having fun before enjoying the ending banquet and talent show that was the last official event of their trip.
Stewart and Isabelle were holding hands as they walked on the beach, and she noticed that he seemed very nervous tonight.
"Is something wrong?" she asked him, stopping and looking into his eyes. She watched as he swallowed hard and looked around them at the empty beach they were walking on. He smiled slightly, looking even more nervous.
"Can we sit down for a minute?" he asked her quietly. His voice was definitely shaking, and a small thrill of suspicion crept into Isabelle's stomach, and fluttered there as he helped her to sit down. Stewart knelt on the sand in front of her, sitting back on his heels, and took her hands in his.
"I know that you have another year at school, and we won't get to see each other much, except at holidays," he told her in a soft, trembling voice. He looked into her beautiful blue eyes, and she could see his heart shining in his eyes.
"I love you, Isabelle," he continued, sending another shivering thrill through her. "Did you notice that this is just about the same place where you told me that you'd be going to live with Victoire, and coming home with us?" She nodded, not taking her eyes off of him, the fluttering in her stomach growing stronger now.
"That was one of the best nights of my life - when I found out you wouldn't be thousands of miles away from me," he told her. Taking a deep breath, he reached in and took something out of his pocket.
"This is the only place I wanted to be to ask you to marry me," he said gently, pouring his heart out to the girl he loved more than he could ever have imagined possible. "I've loved you since that first moment we met here on the island, and I'll love you all of my life." He had opened the ring box, and Isabelle could see a sparkling diamond winking at her in the moonlight. She was crying, and the fluttering in her stomach had blossomed into a warm, tingle that spread all over her body, and her heart was bursting with joy and with the love she felt for this gentle young man.
She threw her arms around him, and cried softly. "Yes, I'll marry you," she whispered into his ear. "I love you so much!" She felt the nervousness drain out of him, and laughed softly.
"You didn't really think I'd say 'No', did you?" she asked him, now leaning back and smiling at him. He let out a big breath.
"I hoped you'd say yes, and I was pretty sure you would, but with something this big, it's hard not to have some 'what-if' stress to go with it," he answered with a rueful smile. He could see the absolute love in her eyes too as he looked up from putting the ring on her finger. He leaned close to her, and their kiss was a gentle brush of lips, tender and warm. He'd closed his eyes as they kissed, and then leaned back again to look into her eyes.
"I suppose we should get back to the hotel - you know your sister is going to want to grill you when she finds out," he said. Isabelle put her arms firmly around his neck, and pulled him close.
"She'll survive a while longer," she told him with a bright smile. "I think I can come up with something better to do for the next hour or two, and it definitely doesn't include, involve, or require Victoire's participation." Stewart grinned and they both laughed as she pulled him down onto the sand.
When they left Marauders Paradise the next morning, it was for Paris, and the start of three weeks of touring Europe together. It was a wonderful, whirlwind twenty-day, eleven country tour, and then it was time to head for home, and a busy last week of the summer getting the Hogwarts-bound students ready for another school year.
The Hogwarts letters were waiting for them when they got back home. Isabelle would have a full schedule, having continued with all O's and E's in her sixth year. Victoire had O's and E's for all of her OWL's. Aaron and Arianna both had passing grades in everything, although they each only had a couple of O's, and a few E's. They both thought that the permission forms for Hogsmeade weekends was the best part of their packages, and were happy that they would finally get to go to town with the other older students this year.
James was practically bouncing off the walls, thrilled to have finally gotten his letter, and only having just over a week until he'd be going to Hogwarts. The annual back to school shopping trip was one of the most special that Harry and Ginny had done so far. Taking their oldest son to get his first wand, and an Owl of his own, and Hogwarts robes had been an incredible experience. The only sadness that Harry felt was in wishing that his own Mum and Dad had been able to share a day like this with him.
They picked up all of the books and other supplies for James, Aaron, and Arianna. Victoire and Isabelle were doing their shopping with Teddy and Stewart, but did meet them for lunch before heading out on their own again for the afternoon. James, Aaron, and Arianna practiced Quidditch every day of that last week of summer, and Harry thought that the three of them, when they all played Chaser, made an even better trio than when the twins had played with Teddy.
James had waffled back and forth on the issue, but had now pretty much decided that he wanted to try out for Teddy's Chaser spot on the team, since even though there might be more glory in being Seeker, he had a lot more fun scoring goals, and playing Chaser with Aaron and Arianna.
The big day arrived – September first. Harry and Ginny loaded up the trunks, bags, and cages in the big car, and then Arianna, Aaron, James, Al, and Lily all piled in for the trip to King's Cross Station. Bill and Fleur had said their goodbyes to Victoire and Isabelle at home, and had let Teddy and Stewart take the girls to the station in their cars, which were both already at the station when Harry and the others pulled into the parking lot.
James had been on Platform nine and three-quarters many times now, so it wasn't a surprise to him, but he was still excited and nervous about his own first trip on the Hogwarts Express, though he was trying his best to be cool about the whole thing. The two young couples had apparently already exchanged their goodbye hugs and kisses, and the girls had loaded their trunks onto a car, and were waiting to help James settle in, and to say goodbye to Harry, Ginny, Al, and Lily.
It was close to eleven o'clock, since James had left his packing to the last minute, so the hugs and kisses were short, and the older kids helped James get his things on the train. Aaron and Arianna also quickly had their trunks loaded up, and then, with one last brief hug for his mother, James climbed aboard the train, and it was soon pulling out of the station. Teddy had been watching Harry, and wondered to himself if he'd had that same look in his eyes every year when he and the other students had left to go to school, and smiled.
"It's going to be alright, Dad," he told Harry. "James is definitely ready for Hogwarts - the only remaining question is whether Hogwarts is ready for him!" Stewart and Ginny laughed, and Harry smiled as he turned to Teddy.
"Why don't we go have some lunch, and we can talk about what you two are going to do now that your babysitters have gone back to school." They all laughed at that - even Al and Lily.
They'd driven from the station to Chudley, and had ordered their lunches when Harry again brought up the subject of jobs for the boys.
"I was wondering if you two had thought much about what you wanted to do for work," he said, looking at Teddy, then Stewart. The boys exchanged glances, and apparently Stewart won the 'you speak for us' contest.
"We'd both like to work for the Phoenix Foundation - we were hoping there might be work there for us, either at the Residence, or doing something else," he answered. Harry and Ginny were both smiling at the boys.
"We thought you two might be looking in that direction," Harry told them. "Why don't the three of us go see the Phoenix Foundation Account Manager after lunch, and see what we can come up with for you."
Teddy and Stewart both quickly agreed, and after lunch, they drove the three cars over to Teddy and Stewart's places. Al and Lily went from there to the Marauders Mall with Ginny, while Teddy and Stewart went with Harry to the Phoenix Foundation office, and sat down with the Foundation's Senior Account Manager, David Matthews, and surprisingly, with Fleur Weasley, who opened the meeting.
"Good afternoon, Teddy, Stewart," she greeted them with a smile. "Before we begin the meeting, I have confidentiality agreements for you to read over and sign." She handed each of them a sheet of parchment, which they quickly read over and signed. They both wondered at the necessity just to meet about getting jobs, or why Fleur would even be there. Fleur's blue eyes were sparkling as she looked at the two young men who would both someday be her own son-in-laws, and couldn't help but smile.
"Thank-you," she told them. "The confidentiality agreements are required by PBP Investments for all of our senior managers," she explained. Teddy and Stewart looked at her in surprise, and she laughed.
"PBP Investments, and the Investments Partnership that works jointly with it, are the sole benefactors of the Phoenix Foundation," she explained. "This isn't a fact that we advertise, but isn't actually anything confidential." She smiled at them again. "The confidential part is who owns PBP Investments." She looked pointedly at Harry, and the boys turned to him and stared, their mouths hanging open. When Teddy was the first to get his mouth working again, he said what both boys were thinking.
"You pay for everything the Foundation does, Uncle Harry?" he asked incredulously. "All of the Residences, the food programs, housing, and everything?"
Harry smiled a bit sheepishly. "There's only a few people that know it, but yes - with the help of the Investment Partnership, we pay for everything," he agreed. Fleur gave them a moment to absorb that before continuing.
"We were pretty sure that after working for the Foundation last summer, that you'd both want to work here." Teddy and Stewart both nodded, and Fleur handed them each several pages of parchment.
"We're offering each of you Junior Account Manager positions with the Foundation. You will both report to David, and I'll let him explain what each of you will be doing," she told them.
They read through their job offers and contracts while David explained to them that Stewart would be in charge of all of the Residences worldwide - operations and the fifteen new building projects that were scheduled each year through 2025. Teddy would be put in charge of the food, housing, and work programs. David would continue to help, and to guide and teach them as they learned about managing a large, multi-billion galleon non-profit Foundation, as well as continuing to work with Griphook, who would still manage all Goblin business for the Foundation.
Teddy and Stewart had both signed their contracts before David had even finished telling them about their jobs, then hugged Harry and Fleur, and shook hands with their new boss before Harry and Fleur left them with David, who wanted to show them the offices they'd be working from, and tell them more about their new jobs. When Harry met up with Ginny and the kids, she asked him how it went.
"I think they would have been happy if we'd offered them jobs cleaning the pool at the Residence," he answered. "This pretty much floored them."
Ginny laughed. "It'd be a waste of their talents to be pool boys. I wonder how they'll like all of the travelling they'll have to do?" Harry smiled, and gave her a hug.
"They're young, and their girlfriends are away at school, so I expect they'll have no problem with travelling the world. I know for a fact that David's looking forward to doing a lot less of that travelling now that he has two protégés to do most of the running around for him." He picked Lily up and gave her a hug too.
"Now if only we can find jobs for these two, I'll be the only one without a job in the whole family!" Lily giggled and kissed him.
"You have a job, Daddy - to make everybody else happy!" Harry laughed and kissed her back.
"How am I doing at my job?" he asked, and she giggled again.
"You're the best at it in the whole world!" she told him, spreading her arms wide." He laughed again, and hugged her one more time.
"Thanks, honey," he told her. "I really love my job, and I love you quite a lot too."
Ginny was starting back to work the next day after her summer off, and so they were sitting down to breakfast the next morning when James' Owl arrived with their first letter of the school year from him. Ginny read it out loud for everyone.
Dear Mum and Dad,
I'm in Gryffindor House! I was so glad, I didn't even mind when Victoire, Isabelle, and Arianna hugged me. The feast, and the dorms, and everything were way cooler than the stories everyone has told me. Aaron told me Quidditch tryouts are on Saturday, and we get our schedules tomorrow. My new roommates seem okay, but they're acting kinda weird, like I'm some kind of WWVN star or something. Hopefully they'll get over it - I know I'm cool, and all that, but yeesh, you'd think I was a rock star with some of the looks I've been getting all night.
Anyway, I better get unpacked and go to sleep. Aaron said it will be a long day tomorrow. Say 'Hi' to Al, and give Lily a hug for me. I'll let you know how the tryouts go.
James
"Why would they treat him like a rock star?" Lily wanted to know. Ginny smiled.
"I don't know, sweetie - could it be that he's just so cute and lovable?" she suggested, and Lily laughed at her mom.
"Nope, that definitely can't be it," she disagreed. They all laughed at that.
"So, now that James is at school, will you two boys still be doing Quidditch practice every morning?" Ginny asked Harry and Al. They looked at each other, smiling.
"If it's alright with you, Dad, I don't mind if we just play Quidditch once in a while," Al told Harry. "I think it'd be more fun to do stuff with Lily instead - especially when it gets cold outside." Lily smiled happily at her brother, and Harry and Ginny laughed.
"It's absolutely alright with me," Harry assured him. "When we do play, I'd also be more than happy to leave the bludgers in the box too." Al nodded his agreement to that plan.
"Maybe when I get to Hogwarts next year, I'll start up a LaserBroom League," he suggested. "Quidditch is fun, but there's a lot less bruising involved with playing LaserBroom." Harry, Ginny, and Lily all laughed with Al.
James was up early and ready to go for his first full day at school. He'd sat with Aaron and Arianna on the train ride to the school, and they'd had a lot of fun during the trip. Victoire and Isabelle dropped by a couple of times, and some of Aaron and Arianna's friends had stopped in to see them, and had been introduced to James.
Teddy had suggested that he wear his Phoenix pin too, and he met several more of the older students because of that, but he hadn't really met any other first year students until they got to Hogsmeade Station, and Hagrid gathered all of the first year students together.
He was sure he'd earned bonus points from some of the other first years when Hagrid welcomed him with an 'ello, James, in his booming voice. He'd been to the school quite a few times, but the boat ride across the lake was a lot different, and he was just as excited as the other kids were, but he wasn't nervous at all.
When they were gathered at the top of the steps, Professor Williamson was there to greet them and lead them into the Great Hall when it was time for the first year students to enter and be sorted. This was James' first time in the hall when it was filled with students, and it was amazing, with the magical sky above, and the floating candles and everything.
He wasn't shy about looking around in wonder, thrilled to be here. Once the sorting hat had done it's annual song, and the sorting began, he could hear the older students all talking behind him, although they were also watching the sorting, and different tables would raise cheers to welcome new students as they were sorted into their Houses. He was surprised when the room went nearly completely silent when his name was called, but he confidently stepped up to the stool and sat down. When Professor Williamson put the hat on his head, he could hear the hat considering his fate.
"Ah!" the Sorting Hat said with a note of pleasure in its voice, "a Potter! I wondered how long it would be before we had another one at our school! Very much like his namesake too, I see! Only one place to put you, my boy - Gryffindor!"
James was smiling as he hopped down, and was welcomed with loud cheers from the students at the Gryffindor table. Hagrid hadn't used his full name when he had welcomed James, and the first years that were still waiting to be sorted were staring at him now, as were quite a few of the students at the tables.
"Why's everyone staring at me like that?" he asked Aaron. His friend smiled and laughed.
"You do know that your parents are pretty well known, right?" he asked. James shrugged.
"I guess a lot of people do know them from the Foundation, the Institute, and the Wizengamot," he agreed, "but what does that have to do with this? They're acting like I'm some kind of celebrity." Aaron put a hand on his friend's shoulder.
"Don't worry about it, mate," he said. "They'll get over it soon enough."
The rest of the evening, with Professor McGonogall's welcome and announcements, the feast, and settling into his dorm room seemed like a blur, and now, in the morning, seemed almost surreal as he walked into the Great Hall for breakfast.
He sat at the Gryffindor table with the other first year students, next to two of the other boys that were in his dorm room. Andrew, or Andy, was in one of the beds next to his, and was a sandy-haired, freckle-faced boy who talked up a storm. Jon was in the bed on the other side of Andy's, and he was a quiet, shy boy with an easy smile, and eyes that seemed to memorize everything he saw around him.
James had liked both boys right away, mostly because they were the least-odd acting kids when they'd first met last night. They sat and talked together through breakfast, mostly telling each other what it was like learning about magic, and what they each thought would be their favourite subjects. When they had finished eating, they waited for their turn to get their schedules. The three of them were in the same classes, so they headed off to the first class of the day together. That first day was great, and James loved every minute of it.
The Quidditch tryouts were the next morning, though, and he was both excited and nervous. Aaron had introduced him to the new Captain of the Gryffindor team the night before, a seventh year student who was their Keeper, and James couldn't tell from that meeting whether he'd be seriously considered for a spot on the team or not.
It was a grey, cloudy morning when he got to the Quidditch pitch for the tryouts. Andy and Jon had offered to come watch, even though they weren't trying out for the team. James thought that maybe Andy should try out to be the game announcer - he certainly had the talking part down cold. He had no problem passing the flying test, and then he waited through the Beater tryouts, where two new students earned spots on the team - actually the one Beater earned back the job he'd had two years ago, and had lost last year.
Since the new team Captain was their Keeper this year, the tryout for that position was for the practice team Keeper position only. That didn't take very long, and then the Chaser tryouts were called. Aaron and Arianna had gotten James put with them for the tryouts, and Aaron smiled at him encouragingly as they got ready to take off.
"Just pretend you're practicing at home, James, and you'll be fine," he said confidently. James smiled, nodded, and they took off together.
The three of them had practiced for over two years now, and they literally flew circles around the other students who were trying out for what they'd all thought was realistically only one position - Teddy's old one. They all knew that James had locked that one spot up in the first few minutes, since he was definitely as good as Aaron and Arianna, and probably better than Teddy had been.
Last year's team Seeker wasn't challenged, and so the tryout ended, and after getting the practice schedule, James was led off by Andy and Jon to celebrate his making the team. There were a few muttered suggestions from some students who tried to say that he only made the team because of his last name, but others who had been at the tryout assured those nay-sayers that he was really a great Chaser, and those kids quickly dropped their snide little comments, probably hoping he'd fall on his face in the first game of the season.
James kept his parents up to date on what was going on at school, and they wrote to him several times a week to tell him what they were doing too. He did miss them, but what he was sure would be hardest to miss was the trip that they would all be taking to Marauders Paradise in October - the first vacation that his family would be going on without him.
He was able to keep busy with classes and Quidditch practices. Andy and Jon were becoming his best friends. He was admittedly a pretty hyper, active kid, and his smile and upbeat personality quickly helped him make lots of other friends too.
Even Peeves seemed to like James - possibly because James was the first person to find out that puking pastilles worked on poltergeist too, which Peeves thought was hilarious, and would now go around trying out all of the different Weasleys Wizarding Wheezes gag candy. You never knew what would be happening to him next when you saw him in the halls. Smoke might be coming out of his ears one time, or you might see him eating a bludger bar that wouldn't just bounce around his stomach but actually bounce him around, or he'd have a profusely bleeding nose from eating a nosebleed nougat. Whatever it was, Peeves would howl with laughter and chase after any kids that got scared, or just parade around the kids that weren't scared of him. James settled into the school schedule, and everything was just as great as he'd hoped and dreamed it would be.
Al and Lily did love their brother a lot, but it was definitely quieter with him gone to Hogwarts, and they were both glad to not have to watch over their shoulders every minute for the next prank or trick. Now that they also didn't have the mandatory morning Qudditch practices, they could do some other things during the week too.
On Mondays they had Rose and Hugo, and sometimes Nicolas and Frederica, come for the day, and they'd play at the cottage, or go on trips together. Tuesdays and Thursdays, they spent at least part of the day at the Residence, and Wednesdays they'd spend the day with Brianna and Carolyn. Fridays were for just the three of them, and they would play together in the mornings, then usually have lunch with Mum, then spend the afternoon shopping or on some other fun outing.
The four of them went to the Cannons season home opener, which the Cannons won over the Arrows. The two kids might wish to be at Hogwarts too, since they'd heard all of their lives about how great it was to be there and learn magic, but they were pretty happy with getting to have their Mum and Dad all to themselves too.
They had two incredible weeks in October at Marauders Paradise. Lisa and Marcus took their two weeks on the island at the same time, so Al and Lily also had Carolyn and Brianna to play with. They all went to see James' first Quidditch match, and watched as he, Aaron, and Arianna scored forty-seven goals on the way to another win over Slytherin, even though the Slytherin Seeker did catch the snitch to end the game. They only got to spend a few minutes with their three Quidditch players to congratulate James, Aaron and Arianna, and to see Victoire and Isabelle before they had to leave, and the team had to go get cleaned up and head for the big party in the Gryffindor Common Room. James' fifteen goals sealed the lips of those few students who doubted him, and the members of the other House teams practically cried at the thought that those three Chasers would be teamed up for the next five seasons.
Harry had begun to think of 'Bonus Day' as the official start of the Christmas season, and so he was, as usual, up early, and downstairs having a cup of coffee when the two Owl Posts arrived. He opened his package quickly, skipped to Fleur's incentive authorization, signed it, and sent both Owls on their way so they wouldn't have to wait. He then went back to the top of the small pile, and began to read Fleur's letter.
Dear Harry,
PBP Investments, and the Investment Partnership have had another incredible year, with continued growth in all areas of our operations. The Gaming, Media, Communications, and Transportation divisions of Marauders Institute continued their strong performance, and the Medical division, led by the astonishing growth of ReVive, continues to make a huge impact for both the company, and more importantly, on the lives of Witches, Wizards, and Muggles all over the world. The other PBP divisions are all strong, with diversity being the key to continued growth, stability, and success.
The Phoenix Foundation also had an outstanding year, and continues to make a significant impact in the Wizarding World. The PBP Investments, and Foundation reports are included in your package, along with my annual incentive authorization. The Owl will wait for your return post. I'm sure you will be pleased with both reports, and how well both your investments, and the Foundation are doing. Contact me any time if you have any questions.
Fleur Weasley
CEO - PBP Investments
Ginny had walked into the kitchen while he'd been reading Fleur's letter, poured herself a coffee, and sat down next to Harry. He handed her that letter, and quickly scanned the PBP financial report.
Annual Financial Report - PBP Investments
Year Ending November 30, 2016
Beginning Balance PBPI: 26,669 million galleons
Beginning Balance PF: 3,200 million galleons
Beginning Balance - IP: 20,557.5 million galleons
New Investment: 0 million galleons
Total Beginning Balance: 50,426.5 million galleons
Profits:
Marauders Institute 13,100 million galleons
Property Division 3,400 million galleons
Goblin Ventures 800 million galleons
Witch Investment 780 million galleons
Other Investments 470 million galleons
Total Profit 18,550 million galleons
Less incentive (40 percent) 7,420 million galleons
*Pending approval of projected incentives.
Profit after incentives 11,130 million galleons
PBP Profit 3,710 million galleons
PF Profit 3,710 million galleons
IP Profit 3,710 million galleons
Ending Balance PBPI: 30,379 million galleons
Phoenix Foundation: 6,910 million galleons
Less Expenses: 3,200 million galleons
Ending Balance - PF: 3,710 million galleons
Ending Balance - IP: 24,267.5 million galleons
Total Ending Balance: 58,356.5 million galleons
He passed that on to Ginny too, went and refilled his coffee, and then continued on to the Phoenix Foundation report.
Annual Phoenix Foundation Report
Year Ending November 30, 2016
Financial Report:
Beginning Balance: 3,200.00 million galleons
New Revenue: 3,710.00 million galleons
Total Expenses: 3,200.00 million galleons
Ending Balance: 3,710.00 million galleons
Phoenix Foundation Program Expenses:
Residences: 980 million galleons
Vaccine Program: 5 million galleons
Goblin Programs: 175 million galleons
Food Program: 800 million galleons
Housing Program: 400 million galleons
Work Program: 805 million galleons
DREAM Christmas: 35 million galleons
Total Expenses: 3,200 million galleons
Phoenix Foundation Program Statistics:
Program Persons Aided Cost Per Person
Residences: 17,000 19,500 galleons**
Vaccine Program: 1 million 5 galleons
Goblin Programs: 67,300 2,600 galleons
Food Program: 4.0 million 200 galleons
Housing Program: 40,000 10,000 galleons*
Work Program: 322,000 2,500 galleons*
DREAM Christmas: 350,000 100 galleons*
This year's report included a summary letter from Teddy and Stewart, and he began to read it even as he handed the financial summary report to Ginny.
Dear Harry,
It is with great pleasure that we have the opportunity to submit this summary for the annual Foundation report. During the past year, the Phoenix Foundation has helped over nineteen million people through our various programs. The eighty residences now house over sixteen thousand children, and there were nearly a thousand school graduates this year, including Stewart. Those eighty residences, which are the majority of the Foundation's physical assets, are valued at nearly three and a half billion galleons.
The vaccine program has virtually eliminated childhood Dragon Pox, and it is extremely rare for an under-age Witch or Wizard to contract that disease. The food program now reaches nearly every Witch and Wizard family in need, and so in the coming year, we plan to increase the per person (or family) allotment for the first time since the program was started, and work to help those families in other ways such as in finding jobs or better paying jobs, and getting suitable housing for them.
We were able to expand the housing project by ten thousand additional homes this year, and were able to put forty thousand families into affordable homes. The Work Program continues to be a great success, and we assisted in supplementing jobs for over three hundred thousand people this year.
An important expansion of that program, and the Food and Housing programs was that the Foundation began helping the Muggle parents of under-age Witches and Wizards. That was one area of concern for our magical community that the Foundation had been unaware of until last Christmas, and we have been able to help many other families over the past year. With our new budget for the coming year, we expect to continue this exciting work, and know that thanks to PBP Investments, the Investment Partnership, and all of the employees and volunteers for the Phoenix Foundation, we are helping to make our world a much better place.
Thank-you for your support!
Teddy & Stewart
Harry slid the last letter across to Ginny, and then got up to fill his coffee again, and start cooking breakfast. Ginny finished reading those reports and letters, then opened her package. She started by reading the letter from her Mum.
Dear Ginny,
I think I've used up all of the standard descriptive phrases over the years, and repeating myself seems redundant. One hundred and thirty-one million galleons have been deposited into your account for your Marauders Institute annual incentive.
I've attached your Witch Investments Annual Report, and as always, I'm very proud of you, and everything you've done with work, business, and your family. Have a great day!
Molly Weasley
Account Manager - PBP Investments & Witch Investments
While Ginny was switching from her mother's short letter to the Witch Investments report, Harry reached around her and refilled her coffee, then kissed her cheek as he returned to his cooking. She was smiling as she began to read the annual report.
Annual Financial Report - Witch Investments
Year Ending November 30, 2016
Beginning Balance WI: 4,290 million galleons
New Investment: 900 million galleons
Beginning Balance PBPI: 2,860 million galleons
New Investment: 600 million galleons
Total Beginning Balance: 8,650 million galleons
Profits:
Manufacturing: 800 million galleons
Retail: 1,800 million galleons
Total Profit: 2,600 million galleons
Less Incentive: 650 million galleons(25 percent)
Profit: 1,950 million galleons
WI Profit: 1,170 million galleons
PBPI Profit: 780 million galleons
Ending Balance WI: 6,360 million galleons
Ending Balance PBPI: 4,240 million galleons
Total Ending Balance: 10,600 million galleons
"Sometimes I wonder if there's any way that things can keep getting better, without ever having a bad - or even an average year with all of the businesses, and every year, I find myself surprised at how great we did," Ginny told Harry when she was finished reading everything. He smiled at her comments and nodded.
"We started out with some really great people running things, and now we get the pick of the best people from all over the world, so I'm not surprised at all," he answered. Ginny got up from the table, gave Harry a big hug, and then they shared a long, sweet kiss that ended when they heard a little giggle in the doorway to the kitchen, and they both turned to see their daughter watching them.
"What's so funny, honey?" Harry asked his daughter, who giggled even more at the rhyme.
"That was a happy giggle, Daddy, not a ha-ha giggle," she informed him. Harry and Ginny both laughed, and Lily was scooped up for some hugs and kisses that kept the happy giggling going for a little bit longer. Al was smiling as he caught the end of that scene. He hugged both of his parents, and Lily, before sitting down at the table.
They had breakfast together, and then Ginny went upstairs again to finish getting ready for work. Harry cleaned up, and Al and Lily went to get ready for their day. They were going to the Residence for the morning, and then would be taking Carolyn and Brianna with them, and meeting Teddy and Stewart for lunch, since they were home for a few days after being gone for most of the last month on Foundation business. After lunch, Lily, Carolyn, and Brianna had Harry and Al booked to spend the afternoon shopping with them at the Marauders Mall.
Harry had met with Susan while at the Residence, and they'd begun the lengthy Christmas gift and party planning. He spent the rest of the morning playing with the kids, and then headed for the mall with Al and the three girls to meet with Teddy and Stewart. During lunch the two young men told them all about their travels, and they talked about the DREAM Christmas, which was going to be on the weekends of December tenth and seventeenth this year. They were both still going to be doing some travelling over the next two weeks, but would be home to help out on the weekend of the seventeenth, and would then be home until after the New Year.
After lunch, Teddy and Stewart went back to work, and Harry and Al spent the afternoon doing a little early Christmas shopping and a lot of carrying bags for Lily, Carolyn, and Brianna, who all seemed to have no trouble finding new clothes, shoes, or other fashion accessories on every trip to the Mall.
Christmas was on a Sunday this year, and Hogwarts had decided that the kids would get out of school on the sixteenth, and would go back on Sunday, January first. The two weeks and a couple of days from December first, until the students were coming home for the holidays went by very fast. Al and Lily worked with Harry and Ginny on the first weekend of the DREAM Christmas, and the four of them made thirty-nine dreams come true on the tenth and eleventh.
Toys and gifts for parents were common wishes, and one lucky student who played on the Slytherin Quidditch team at Hogwarts was going to find a Nimbus 2015 under the tree this year so that he wouldn't have to use a school broom anymore. Harry had joked that it was okay to help out the Slytherin team player because Gryffindor had already played them this season.
He and the kids spent a lot of time shopping for presents too. They took most of the cousins shopping at least once, and took Carolyn and Brianna out twice to get gifts for Lisa, Marcus, and each other. They also took small lists of gift wishes from kids at the Residence, and would take care of a few kids gifts on each trip.
They were at the train station early on Friday, and Harry, Al, and Lily had drinks and a snack while they waited for the Hogwarts Express to arrive. They were on the platform when it finally pulled in, and their five students were soon loaded up in the car, and heading back to the Cottage. James talked nearly non-stop the whole way, barely giving the others a chance to say a word.
He had been so glad to see his father that he hadn't even cared that it wasn't cool to hug parents, and had nearly thrown himself at Harry when he jumped off the train. Harry had held him tight for maybe just a moment or two too long, then had gotten the hint and let James go, and moved on to hugs for the other four teens, as they joined the group on the platform.
When they got back to the Cottage, everything was dropped off, and then they used the TransPortal to go to the Marauders Mall, where they were meeting Bill, Fleur, Teddy, Stewart, and Ginny for lunch. There were more hugs and kisses when they all got together, and it was a fairly noisy lunch with several conversations going on at the same time through most of the meal.
Once lunch was over, Harry was left with all of the students, and Al and Lily, while the others went back to work. They spent the afternoon shopping, and then went back to the Cottage in time to make dinner. Harry wasn't surprised to see Teddy and Stewart get to the Cottage first, since an hour or so at lunch wasn't much time to spend with the girlfriend and fiancée they hadn't seen since September first. Ginny wasn't far behind them getting home, while Bill and Fleur were the last to arrive, having stopped off to pick up a special dessert for their meal.
After they'd eaten, Teddy, Victoire, Stewart, and Isabelle went out for the evening, for some reason thinking that going dancing would be more fun that hanging out with their parents. Bill and Fleur gathered up Victoire and Isabelle's bags, and headed for home. Harry and Ginny spent the rest of the night talking and playing with the kids, and then after putting Al and Lily to bed, went to get some sleep themselves. Aaron, Arianna, and James stayed up later watching Christmas shows, and talking about what they'd be doing during the holidays until they ran out of steam sometime after midnight.
They were all volunteering to help with the DREAM Christmas on Saturday, and so Harry was up early cooking breakfast. James and Aaron were downstairs first, and they mostly talked Quidditch while they waited for everyone else to get to the kitchen. The first thing Harry noticed was that the morning noise level was higher, and he smiled, glad to have everyone home for the holidays. Teddy and Stewart arrived next. Being bachelors, somebody had to feed them once in a while, and everyone else was downstairs soon after they walked in.
A noisy breakfast was followed by another amazing day of finding and granting Christmas dreams to the young and old. It was not unusual to see happy tears from the girls when some of the more heart-warming dreams were granted. Ginny's favourite for the day was an old Wizard she and Harry had overheard telling his equally elderly wife that he'd wished he could have finally bought her a real diamond engagement ring for their one hundred and fiftieth Christmas together.
The kind old Witch had just patted his arm, kissed his cheek, and told him that she didn't need money or diamonds when being together with the man she loved was all that she'd ever wanted. Harry and Ginny smoothly introduced themselves at that point. Ginny took the old Witch on a shopping trip, and they bought presents for her husband, their kids, grandkids, and great-grandchildren, while Harry took the old Wizard and helped him pick out a beautiful diamond engagement ring for his wife. They finished taking care of this DREAM Christmas by giving them a small bag of galleons to make sure the couple could have a great Christmas dinner for their family this year. Ginny was hugging her own husband when the old couple walked slowly away after having thanked them over and over for their help.
"I think we've found another area where the Foundation can help out, Harry," she told him quietly. He smiled at her, and kissed her softly.
"Definitely," he agreed. "I'll get David to look into it in the New Year. We must not be doing a very good job taking care of our seniors if that wonderful couple are any indication. They hardly have enough to feed themselves."
Ginny nodded sadly. "It's just as sad as what was done with our orphans before we started the Residences," she said. "I've got their address, though, and I'll make sure that they don't have to worry about where the next meal is coming from anymore." Harry kissed her again.
"I don't have any living grandparents - maybe we should 'adopt' them," he suggested, and Ginny laughed.
"Maybe we just will," she agreed.
With the much larger group of volunteers helping out this time, they were able to make eighty-three DREAMs come true by the end of the day, and then they all headed back to the Cottage for a late dinner and to relax after a long day walking around the Mall and through Diagon Alley. It was already pretty late when Bill, Fleur, Victoire, Isabelle, Stewart, and Teddy headed to their homes, and everyone else quickly went upstairs to bed.
The Weasley family Christmas was on Sunday. After breakfast, Harry and Al were drafted to join the Gryffindor Chaser trio for their morning Quidditch workout. Ginny and Lily stayed inside where it was warm, and had hot drinks and a snack ready for when they came back in with cold hands and faces, and broad smiles. They skipped lunch, knowing they'd all stuff themselves at the dinner later, and headed for the Burrow to help Mum, Dad, Kreacher, and Winky with getting that dinner ready.
The whole extended family had arrived by early afternoon, and the house was filled with the usual loud talk and laughter that always came with a gathering at the Burrow. They played games, and caught up on current events with everyone. Kreacher and Winky had created another culinary masterpiece, which was followed by the entertaining exchange of gifts.
Harry and Ginny were sitting on one of the sofas with Nathalie and Charlie as they watched everyone opening gifts. Harry was thinking about how different it was now that they all had kids and were each so busy. This was actually the first time that they'd spent with Nathalie, Charlie, and Art since they'd stopped in to see them for a couple of days in August while they were touring Europe. She must have been reading his mind again, and nudged him gently to get his attention.
"You should bring Al and Lily and come spend a few days with us in the New Year," she suggested. "We miss seeing you, and the kids at the Dragon's Lair would love to have you come see them again too."
Harry laughed. "How'd you know what I was thinking?"
Nathalie laughed too. "We never have sat down to figure out why we can do that you know," she answered. He nodded, and Ginny leaned in to join the conversation.
"I think Harry and the kids can get away sometime in January, Nathalie," she told her sister-in-law. "I'd come too, but I'd just be missing playing with the other kids at the lab."
Nathalie smiled at her. "It's hard to believe sometimes that either one of us gets paid to do our jobs," she said happily. "You invent things and play games, and I play with children all day."
Ginny laughed. "Speak for yourself - I'm rather fond of the pay part of my job." Nathalie smiled and laughed again.
"It does have a few advantages," she conceded.
They were distracted with kids showing them their gifts, and then other things happening around the room, but Ginny made herself a mental note to make sure that she did get Harry and the kids to go for a few days, or maybe a week long visit with her brother and sister-in-law. It was nice seeing everyone here, but with so many people, you were lucky if you even got a few minutes to talk to each person in the family before the day was over.
It was time to gather up the kids and head for home long before they were ready to say goodbye to everyone, but most of the adults in the family had work in the morning, so there were lengthy hugs and kisses, and then Harry and Ginny took James, Al, Lily, Aaron, and Arianna back to the Cottage. Everyone was tired out, and Harry had a busy week planned for all of the kids, so they all went straight up to their beds with smiling faces and happy memories of their day at the Burrow.
Ginny was working all week, and so were Teddy and Stewart, who were especially busy with the food program and the Residences. Harry was taking the whole Christmas vacation to just spend time with James, Aaron, Arianna, Victoire, and Isabelle. They would be doing the annual Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at the Residence, and the rest of the two weeks were wide open for them to just play and have fun - except for the homework that each of the students had to do during the break. Harry had teased Isabelle and Victoire that they could do that in the evenings when they were hanging out with Teddy and Stewart, an idea that they both laughed at and told him had no chance of happening.
He started their week with a huge breakfast that the three boys in particular were able to demolish. That was followed by what would probably be a daily Quidditch practice while James was home, and then they headed for the Mall in Paris that had that amusement park inside, and spent the rest of the day there. Isabelle and Victoire spent most of the day shopping, meeting up with the others for lunch, and the others mostly played, and only did a little shopping after lunch, wanting to let their food settle before going back on some of the fun, but stomach churning rides.
They were home in time to make dinner for Ginny. Victoire and Isabelle had other plans for dinner and the evening, so they headed for home to get ready for their dates. Aaron, James, and Al got into a marathon GameWizard night after dinner, and the girls all settled down to a quiet evening watching some favourite Christmas shows on the WWVN.
Harry moved from one group to the other, playing games, and cuddling with Ginny as they watched the shows. He'd deliver drinks and snacks to each group when he switched. When Lily started to fall asleep, he took her up to bed, helped her change, then read her a few pages of a story before she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep. He and Ginny then left the other kids to stay up as late as they wanted, and headed to bed too, one tired from a long work day, and the other tired from a long day of play and shopping.
Tuesday was designated a homework day, so after having breakfast and Quidditch practice, Harry, Al, and Lily left Aaron, Arianna, and James to do homework, and spent the morning visiting, and dropping off Christmas presents to some of the families that they'd helped out over the past years, and had stayed in touch and become friends with. They were back at the Cottage in time to make lunch for everyone.
Since the kids had all worked hard on their studies all morning, they were far enough along to take the rest of their first study day off, so they all decided to pop over to the island for a few hours of playtime in the sun. It wasn't hard to talk Isabelle and Victoire into coming too, and they also picked up Carolyn, Brianna, Nicolas, Rose, Hugo, and Frederica to go with them. Harry asked Winky to make up an afternoon snack for them to have while they were there, so that he could spend all of his time playing with the kids, and she happily went over-the-top, making something closer to a feast than a snack.
Victoire and Isabelle were booked every evening with the boys, so they helped Harry out by dropping Carolyn and Brianna off at the Residence so that he could head back to the Cottage with the rest of the kids. The four cousins were going to be staying overnight with them - a last minute request from Al and Lily. Harry had to scramble to get dinner cooking, and so he still had work to do when Ginny got home. He poured her a glass of wine, and she sat at the table while he continued working. She told him about her day in the lab, and he told her about how the families they'd visited in the morning were doing, and about the afternoon on the island, and the little adventures he and the kids had while they were there. He was telling her about their plans for the next day, and Ginny smiled at him.
"That'll be fun," she told him, "but you better move your time a bit. Mandy's meeting with Isabelle first thing in the morning." Harry looked over at her, the unspoken question in his eyes.
"She wants to make sure that the Institute gets first shot at hiring her when she's done in June," Ginny explained. "Professor McGonagall says she's the brightest student to come out of the school since Hermione, except maybe for Lisa. I'm sure Mandy's going to make her an offer she can't refuse." Harry laughed.
"Like we're going to let any other company outbid us," he answered. "Why don't you have Mum transfer the usual amount to Isabelle's account, and you can give the letter to Mandy to sweeten the deal." Ginny laughed too.
"Already done," she advised him. "I was sure you'd want to do that, so when I found out about the meeting I called my mother right away. Mandy already has the letter."
Harry gave her a hug. "We'll have to figure something else out for a graduation present, then. She won't be needing a house or money." Ginny hugged him back.
"No problem - I'll just take her out and go for a whole new wardrobe, and maybe a shiny new car - she did get her license in the summer so she could drive Stewart's car too," she said, and Harry nodded his agreement.
"Those are great ideas. I'm sure that James will have no problem in having a longer Qudditch practice tomorrow while we wait for Isabelle to finish her meeting, and then we can head out for the day after she gets back."
They followed dinner up with a trip to the mall so that Ginny could pick up a few extra Christmas gifts. While they were there, Hugo and Lily found a little girl that could use a DREAM Christmas, which they were all happy to take the time to help with, then they headed back to the Cottage, where Harry and Ginny went to bed, leaving Aaron, Arianna, and James in charge of making sure the younger kids got to bed when they were all finally as tired as their 'old' parents were.
Harry was in the kitchen, having a hot coffee to help him thaw out from Qudditch practice when Victoire and Isabelle came in. Isabelle threw herself into his arms, and gave him a long, hard hug.
"Thank-you!" she told him happily, her smile bright, and her eyes dancing with joy. Harry smiled at her too.
"You're welcome, but what did I do?" he asked innocently. She and Victoire both laughed at him, and Victoire answered his question.
"Do you really think that we could live at our house, and spend so much time here, without figuring out that you're the one trying to hide in the background while you make all of these wonderful things happen for everyone else?" she asked, and Isabelle nodded.
"And we love you a whole lot for making everything so amazing," Isabelle told him. Her eyes misted over. "Having a real, loving family was bigger than anything I could have dared to dream for. Something like this is way beyond anything I could even imagine, let alone dream about."
Harry's green eyes were a little misty too. "You deserve everything, and a lot more," he told her. "I think Stewart will help make sure the 'a lot more' will happen for you, so dream big."
Isabelle hugged him again, and then they dropped the discussion as Arianna, Lily, Rose, and Frederica joined them in the kitchen, checking to see if it was time to head out for their trip.
Their adventure today was to spend the day touring and shopping in Moscow. Both the Muggle, and Wizarding parts of the city were quite different from home, and they were fascinated by everything they saw. Harry hadn't been to the city in a few years, and was again reminded in a thousand ways of why this was one of his favourite places to visit.
He took everyone to two museums, one cathedral, and a chauffeured tour of the major city sites, then they shopped for a few hours before going back home, loaded down with bags, and tired from a busy, fun day. Harry started on dinner, and smiled to himself. Their day wasn't even close to being over. He and Ginny had tickets for everyone to go see a live show at London's Magick Theatre - one of the best musical versions of 'A Christmas Carol'.
Nearly all of the Weasley family were going, and they'd also picked up tickets for Lisa, Marcus, Carolyn, and Brianna. Bill, Fleur, Teddy and Stewart would be joining them for dinner too, so Victoire and Isabelle had headed home to get ready before coming back for dinner. While they were gone, and the other kids were off playing, Harry got everything cooking, set the table for the masses, and even had a few minutes to pour himself some wine and check on the kids before getting back to work.
They'd dropped Nicolas and Frederica off on the way home from Moscow, but Rose and Hugo were still with them, so a quick WiComm call added Ron and Hermione to the dinner guest list, bringing the total to seventeen. That prompted another WiComm call - this time to Ginny to have her pick up some extra desserts on the way back to the Cottage after work.
She was the first one to get to the Cottage, and she immediately joined in with the work. Arianna joined them, and she took over helping so that Ginny could take some time to get ready for the night, and to get Lily and Rose ready too. Bill was put in charge of getting drinks for everyone when he and Fleur came in with Victoire and Isabelle. The three girls all joined in to help Harry, and by the time that Stewart, Teddy, Ron, and Hermione arrived, everything was ready, and they sat down for a nearly Burrow-like, noisy meal together.
After dinner, Harry went to get ready quickly, while the rest of the adults cleaned up, then they all headed for London. Mum and Dad came to the theatre for nearly all of the shows, and had a private balcony box, so they were watching the musical from there. Their box had room for eight, so they had Percy, Penelope, George, Marietta, Nicolas, and Frederica with them, and the rest of the group had the orchestra seats that Harry had reserved several months ago.
He wasn't that big a fan of a lot of the concerts and plays that were performed here, but he did love musicals, and this was one of his favourites. He was lost to the story from the start to the intermission, and then through the rest of the show. The kids must have really liked it too, since even James managed not to get even the slightest bit restless the entire night. They followed the show with a dessert and coffee stop at a nearby restaurant with everyone. They talked about the parts of the show they all liked best, and more than one of them could be heard humming the tunes from the songs. When Harry and Ginny finally took the kids home sometime after midnight, they all went straight to bed, ready to get one of the four more sleeps 'til Christmas started.
James groaned the next morning when he found out that it was another study day already, but after breakfast and Quidditch practice, he got his books and sat down with Aaron and Arianna to get it done so that maybe they could have the afternoon off again. Isabelle had a lot more work than the other students, with this being her NEWT year, so she was definitely going to study the entire day, and Victoire was going to stay with her sister even if she got her work done early.
Harry stopped over at the Residence to see if Susan had any last minute gift needs, but everything was under control there, so after a short visit with some of the kids, he went back to the Cottage and played with Al and Lily while the students did homework until lunchtime. They decided that lunch and an afternoon of shopping at the Marauders Mall would be the plan for the rest of their day.
After they'd eaten, Aaron, James, and Al left Harry to shop with the girls - and carry the bags - while they got to play in the fun stores like the BroomCloset and the GamePortal. Arianna and Lily did pick up a few things that they'd found on sale, but were mostly happy to just wander the stores. The three of them were in one of the toy stores when they found another family to help with a DREAM Christmas, which they spent about an hour doing before continuing their tour through the rest of the Mall.
When it was time to go back to the Cottage to make dinner, they tracked the boys down, and left for home. They'd all had a late night yesterday, and Harry and Ginny had the Institute Christmas party on Friday night, so they again let the kids decide how late they wanted to stay up, but went to bed pretty early themselves so they could get a good long sleep tonight. Even taking ReVive every day could only do so much - especially when it came to keeping up with the seemingly endless energy of their children.
Ginny was only working until lunchtime, and then she had an afternoon spa session booked for herself, Arianna, and Lily at SpaMagic. Fleur was doing the same with Victoire and Isabelle, who were both coming to their first Institute Christmas party with Teddy and Stewart this year, and Lisa had booked appointments for herself, Carolyn, and Brianna, so that Lily would have some company for the junior spa package the three youngest girls were spending the afternoon enjoying.
Harry met Ginny at the Mall with the kids for lunch, then she took Lily and Arianna to meet the rest of the girls at SpaMagic while he and the boys headed back to the Cottage, where they planned to just hang out and play until it was time for Harry to get ready for the party too.
He was dressed and ready for his date when the girls finally made it home. Ginny had taken everything with her so that she could be ready for their night out when she got home. Aaron, James, and Al were all in the kitchen with Harry, who was just finishing up making dinner for the kids when the three girls came in. James' mouth dropped open when he saw his mother first, and then Arianna. He started to blush, and to cover it, he pasted an impish grin to his face.
"I think there's a law somewhere that Moms aren't supposed to be so great looking," he told Ginny. She laughed and gave him a hug. She hadn't missed his blushing, or that he'd definitely noticed just how beautiful his friend and Quidditch teammate looked too.
"Thanks, honey," she told him. "That's really a major compliment coming from you." Harry gave Ginny a hug next, and was laughing at James' banter.
"Don't worry, James, if looking like this is against the law, then I'll be happy to take her into custody right now," he offered. James tried to look grossed out, but couldn't help laughing too.
"Why don't you two get out of here before I lose my appetite," he suggested. "We can finish up making dinner, and we'll be fine. You kids go have fun, and be home before sunrise." Ginny laughed, feeling a little déjà vu, remembering a similar comment she'd made when her own parents were going out on a date one night back when she and Harry were dating. Harry must have been thinking the same thing, because they both laughed at the same time.
"Thanks for letting us stay out late, Dad," she teased James, then took Harry's hand, and they left for the Emerald City Centre, both of them looking forward to the dinner, dance, and evening with their friends.
"They're gone!" Lily told the others as she looked out the window. James laughed.
"Let's finish cooking dinner, and get to the eat, drink, and be merry part of the night," he said, smiling at the others. "I bet we have way more fun tonight playing games and watching shows, and eating all of the goodies that Winky left for us than they have at that boring old dance."
Aaron and Al set plates on the table, and Arianna and James finished the cooking. James kept trying to figure out why his stomach was acting all weird whenever he looked at Arianna. He saw her every day at school, and they played Quidditch together all the time, but she definitely didn't look like any of his other teammates tonight.
Arianna smiled a lot, and watched the devastating effect it had on James. He was still really young, but she thought to herself that if he grew up to be half as great as his Dad, that maybe when they were both older, she'd find out if dating younger men was as great as those TeenWitch magazines said. She couldn't help but let a happy little laugh out at the thought, and that musical sound practically turned her young friend to jelly. Yep, might just definitely have to find out. They were about the same difference in age as Teddy and Victoire, except in reverse, so she didn't see how that could be a problem.
They had dinner, cleaned up, and then they all went into the sitting room and played GameWizard for a while. After that, they watched a movie together. Lily and Al were both tired, so Arianna took them upstairs, read them a story in Lily's room, and got them tucked in and kissed them goodnight before joining James and her brother in the sitting room again. She was just in time for the start of the first of two late night Christmas movies that the three of them planned to stay up late and watch.
Harry and Ginny arrived at the Emerald City Centre, and were directed to one of the smaller ballrooms this year, where they met up with Neville, Luna, Marcus, Lisa, Owen, and Natalie, who were their table companions for dinner. When they were mingling before dinner, they found out that Teddy, Stewart, Victoire, and Isabelle were dining in the Grand Ballroom at Mandy's table, and teased Isabelle that it must be nice to be the hottest new prospect of the year, and to be wined and dined by the head of the company, and getting to sit with the CEO's of PBP Investments, and Marauders Institute. The girls had laughed.
"Probably more like Mum wants to keep an eye on us," Isabelle had told them with a smile. Ginny had patted her arm.
"The price you have to pay to have parents that love you so much," she told her adopted niece. "I have a feeling that you don't mind these minor little sacrifices at all."
When they were all settled at their tables for dinner, Natalie did the welcoming speech for their room, and the first course of their meals were served. They found out after dinner why they'd been put in this room - it was the WizardKaraoke club for the night, and Harry and Luna had been drafted to be the opening act.
They wowed their audience again this year, and then joined the others and danced the night away. When they got up to sing a third song after midnight, word had gotten around, and the place was packed when they did a repeat performance of that first song they'd ever done together a year ago. When the party was getting ready to end at nearly two, they led everyone that was still there in singing a few Christmas songs that was a perfect end for the night's entertainment.
When Harry and Ginny got back to the Cottage from their party, they found Aaron sound asleep on one sofa, and James had fallen asleep too, his head on Arianna's lap. She smiled at them, when they came in, still running her hand softly through James' hair.
"For a couple of big, tough Quidditch players, they don't have much stamina for staying up late," she told them quietly. Harry came over to pick his son up and take him upstairs to bed.
"I don't think we have to tell him he fell asleep in my lap do we?" Arianna asked Ginny. "I'd really rather not embarrass him, and I'm sure Aaron would give him a hard time about it too."
Ginny smiled. "I think we can keep the secret, as much fun as it might be to tease him at least a little." She went over and gently woke Aaron up, and he went upstairs to bed too after sleepily hugging Ginny and Arianna. The two Witches sat up and talked for a little while longer, filling each other in on the night's highlights, and then they turned out the lights, and went to bed too.
Christmas Eve day, Harry was in the kitchen cooking breakfast and having his first coffee of the day. 'It should be a pretty quiet day', he thought to himself. Teddy and Stewart were leaving for France with Bill, Fleur, Victoire, and Isabelle, and wouldn't be back until the Christmas party at the Residence. Mum and Dad were heading for Romania, and were spending the weekend with Charlie, Nathalie, and Art. The rest of the Weasley clan were either going away, or if at home, had in-law families coming to spend the holiday with them. Arianna was first downstairs, and she sat at the table.
"Good morning!" he told her brightly. "I thought you might sleep in after being up so late." She smiled at him.
"For some reason, Christmas is a lot more exciting for me than it used to be," she told him, and Harry laughed.
"I know what you mean," he agreed. "My Aunt and Uncle really knew how to make Christmas special for me - like the year they gave me a toothpick, and then another year I nearly threw my gift out, since it never occurred to me that a single tissue could actually be a present. The best year was when I got a whole box of dog biscuits." Arianna laughed too, but it was a haunted sound.
"I wish my family had been that generous - all Aaron and I seemed to get at Christmas was a few extra - " she trailed off and started to cry, and Harry immediately went over to her, and wrapped her up in his arms, holding her until the tears subsided.
"It's okay, honey," he said gently as he held her. "Nothing like that is ever going to happen to you or Aaron again." He knew that neither of the kids had ever talked with any of the adults at the Residence or school about the abuse they had endured before being brought to the Residence, so he was very careful. He took her face gently in his hands, so that she'd look into his eyes.
"You don't have to talk about it today, Arianna," he told her seriously. "You and Aaron should just enjoy Christmas, and not think about bad times. I'd just like to suggest that if you ever want to talk about those things sometime with me, with Ginny, or anyone else, it will make it easier to deal with." He smiled wryly.
"I waited until the night I met you and Aaron to tell anyone, and thanks to you guys and Ginny, talking about it helped a lot more than I ever thought that it would."
Arianna gave him a hug. "Thank-you. I don't know if I can do that yet. We haven't seen them in years now, but I'm still afraid of them." Harry gently wiped tears from her face.
"You should feel sorry for them," he told her. She looked up at him in surprise, and he smiled.
"They took everything your parents had, and they couldn't even see that you and Aaron were your parent's greatest treasure. Everything else they took was just stuff." Ginny came in too then, and catching the last part of the conversation, came over to wrap Arianna up in a hug while Harry got back to cooking.
"Come on, you two," Ginny told them. "It's Christmas, and we have a whole day to ourselves that I think we should fill up with some serious Christmas bargain shopping," she told them. Arianna laughed again, this time the happy, musical laugh they loved to hear. Lily came in then, all smiles, hugs, and kisses.
"Did I hear someone say 'shopping'?" She gave all three of them hugs, and looking into Arianna's eyes, gave her an extra big second hug and a kiss. Arianna laughed again.
"What was that for?" she asked Lily.
"You looked like you needed an extra special hug this morning," Lily answered, and Arianna smiled.
"I did," she agreed. "Thank-you." Lily beamed at her parents.
"Are you absolutely sure we can't trade James for Arianna?" she asked them hopefully. They all laughed.
"Sorry, honey," Ginny told her. "Your perseverance is admirable, since you've been trying to trade him for almost all of your life, but your Dad and I are kinda fond of him, so you're stuck with him."
Lily gave a theatrical sigh. "If I have to. Can I at least have Aaron and Arianna here for Christmas with us?" she asked. Arianna looked surprised. They hadn't actually talked about whether she and her brother would be staying at the Residence tonight, but looking at Harry and Ginny, they obviously had.
"Lily, I think you just blew one of our surprises," Harry told her. "Of course they're going to be here with us tonight and tomorrow." Lily jumped up and down in delight, and gave Arianna another big hug.
"Yeah!" she yelled happily.
"Yeah, what?" James asked as he, Aaron, and Al walked in.
"Yeah, Aaron and Arianna are staying overnight for Christmas with us!" Lily told him. James gave Aaron a 'high five', then sat at the table and started to fill his plate from the assortment of dishes that Harry had been putting on the table. He definitely got his appetite from the same Weasley gene that Ron got it from.
Diagon Alley, and the Marauders Mall were packed with shoppers. The girls were off looking for Christmas bargains, and Harry and the boys were wandering around their favourite stores. Harry had noticed that James had been looking at some decidedly girls-only type presents as they walked around the Mall, and discreetly diverted Aaron and Al elsewhere for a while, so that he and James could have a little time alone.
"We could pick her out something at the jewellery store, James," he told his son quietly. James looked like he'd been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.
"What are you talking about?" he asked, and Harry laughed quietly.
"You know, it's okay for you to like Arianna, and you've been looking at 'girl' gifts in the store windows for the last hour," he answered. "Let's go find her something nice. You could always give it to her anonymously, if you don't want Aaron razzing you."
James could see there was no point in trying to deny it, and he smiled ruefully. "Thanks, Dad." He had the gift that they had picked out for Arianna tucked into a pocket just before Aaron and Al caught up with them again. The two boys had found a couple of young boys who needed a Christmas DREAM, so they took Harry and James to meet the kids, and they spent the rest of the morning helping that family, and then they went to meet the girls for lunch in the food court.
They went back to the Cottage for the afternoon. James and Aaron went outside to play Quidditch. Harry, Ginny, Arianna, and Al all declined the offer to join them, deciding that a warm sitting room and hot drinks was more inviting than a couple of hours out in the cold. The boys must have figured that out too fairly quickly, since they were back inside after less than an hour, and they all relaxed, played some games, and watched a bit of WWVN. Harry and Ginny put together a light dinner for everyone, and after eating and cleaning up, they all went to get ready for Christmas Eve at the Residence.
Susan was smiling as she watched Wayne and Harry playing dolls with some of the younger girls at the Residence. They were just a couple of big kids, which probably explained why all of the kids loved both of them so much. Ginny came up next to her and put an arm around Susan's waist.
"I know Harry likes playing dolls because the girls aren't playing to win like when he gets beat all the time at GameWizard," she told her friend. "Why does Wayne do it?" Susan laughed.
"I think it's because when we do decide to have kids, he's hoping for girls, and wants to be ready," she answered.
Ginny smiled. "You two are going to be great parents - you already are great parents if you include all of these kids." Susan returned Ginny's smile.
"Since they're busy playing, why don't we go get some of the older girls together, and challenge the boys to a World Cup Quidditch match," she suggested. "With you and Arianna on our team, we should do pretty well."
Ginny nodded, and the two women left their boys to play with their dollies and little friends. A few hours of games, snacks, and fun later, and it was time to head back home again. Harry and Ginny waited until they were sure all of the kids were asleep before taking the magical locks off of their Christmas present hiding spots, and getting everything, including James' anonymous present, under the tree. They were cuddled close together in bed soon after they were done, and Harry was already dozing off.
"I didn't recognize that one present for Arianna," Ginny said quietly to him. Harry snuggled in closer, smiling, as he kissed her neck.
"Our eldest son wanted to get her a present," he told her in a near-whisper. "I think we still have another year or two before he'll admit that he likes girls, or at least one in particular. That's why he didn't write on the tag who it's from."
Ginny laughed quietly. "That's so sweet. Want to make a small wager on whether she figures it out?"
Harry laughed softly too. "No way. I'm sure she'll keep his secret, but she's going to know for sure." He waited for any answer, but the sound of her steady breathing told him she'd already drifted off to sleep, so he closed his eyes, and the next thing he knew, it was morning, and Lily was waking him up with a kiss and hug.
"Merry Christmas, Daddy!" she said happily. He scooped her up into a hug, and plopped her onto the bed between himself and Ginny, who rolled over to give Lily a hug and kiss too. "Merry Christmas, Mommy! Come on! Let's go downstairs and open presents!"
Her parents laughed, and let her lead them downstairs to the sitting room, which was already occupied by an excited bunch of kids - apparently Lily had been elected to be the wake-up committee, so once they were seated, the gift opening got going. Virtual GameWizard games, dolls, and other toys were high on the best-loved presents that were received. There were also clothes, shoes, and other gifts ranging from art to Wizarding Wheezes. Ginny was right about Arianna knowing who had given her the beautiful little diamond necklace, and Harry was glad he hadn't taken the wager. Ginny had hugged her as they looked in the hall mirror after she'd helped Arianna put it on.
"That looks absolutely beautiful on you," Ginny told her with a smile.
"I didn't get him anything - well except what Aaron and I got him," she said quietly. Ginny smiled and squeezed her tighter.
"I'm guessing that smile was more than enough of a present for him - even if he won't admit that he got it for you," she whispered back.
"That's okay," Arianna told her. "I can wait until he catches up."
Ginny laughed quietly again. "He'll be a really lucky young Wizard if you do."
The five kids played while Harry and Ginny went to make breakfast, then after eating, they spent the rest of the morning together, listening to Christmas music and playing with new games and toys. They just had a light snack for lunch, and then took turns getting ready for the Christmas party at the Residence. Arianna was the only one in the sitting room when James came in, and he blushed a little when he saw her, and looked at the necklace she was still wearing.
"Can I talk to you for a minute?" she asked him. He nodded and sat on the sofa next to her. She looked around and listened to make sure nobody else was nearby, and then she leaned over and kissed his cheek.
"Thank-you for the necklace," she whispered. "I really love it." When he looked into her eyes, he realized there was no point in denying it – not to her.
"You're welcome, but I'll deny it to anyone else," he said with a grin. Arianna laughed.
"Your secret's safe with me," she promised.
When everyone was ready, they took the TransPortal to the Residence. They were the first volunteers to get there. Aaron and Arianna would be staying at the Residence for most of the rest of the holidays, so they had brought their bags with them, and went to their rooms to drop them off and get settled in while the others found games and activities to join. Aaron stopped in to Arianna's room, since his idea of unpacking and his sister's were vastly different, and he sat on her bed as she continued to carefully fold and put clothes away.
"Do you know that this next week will be about the longest we've stayed here in a year?" he asked his sister. She smiled and nodded.
"Yeah - all summer with Harry and Ginny, and most of our last Christmas holiday at the Cottage, or on the island with them, and the rest of the time at school. It almost feels like we're visiting here."
Aaron laughed. "It has been a pretty awesome year. Sometimes I even go days without those nightmares." Arianna sat down on her bed next to him.
"Harry was talking to me yesterday before breakfast, and telling me about the crummy presents his family used to give him at Christmas - when he got anything at all, and I almost told him about what our family used to do to us, but I just started crying instead. He held me while I was crying, and suggested that you and I should talk to him, Ginny, or someone else about the things that happened to us during those years after Mum and Dad died." Aaron looked surprised.
"He said that talking about what had happened to him with us, and with Ginny had really helped him, and he seemed to wish that he hadn't kept everything bottled up for so many years. I wonder if we did talk with them if it'd help with those nightmares," she suggested. Aaron thought about that for a while, and Arianna got back up and finished her unpacking. Finally, Aaron answered her.
"I don't know if I'm ready for that yet, Arianna," he told her, "but when I am, I can't think of anyone else I'd rather talk about all of that with than them." Arianna walked over to him, and pulled him to his feet.
"Me too," she told him, and smiled. "Right now, we still have most of Christmas day to enjoy, and we're missing out on all of the fun, so let's get going!" Aaron laughed, and followed her out of the room to go join everyone for the celebration.
For some reason, the changes that were inevitable with kids growing up and moving away, or being adopted, which was happening more often over the past few years, were more obvious this Christmas. Lisa and Marcus had picked up Carolyn, and Brianna and taken them for Christmas with Marcus' family in the United States. Megan and her boyfriend were staying on the island, and his family was there with them. The one thing that always stayed the same was that all of these children needed people to love them, and thankfully, there were lots of Witches and Wizards willing to do that at all of the Residences.
When Bill, Fleur, and the others got there, Teddy and Stewart were diverted to where new volunteers were gathering to meet the two boys that Susan had carefully selected for them, and then they spent most of the afternoon getting to know the kids, who had both come to the Residence after Stewart had left, and so were spending their very first Christmas outside of the orphanages they'd been in since they were babies. Harry had been watching the two young men with the little boys that looked like they were maybe four or five, and Ginny came up beside him.
"How cool is it to see our kids growing up and wanting to get involved and take care of other kids too?" she asked him, taking his hand and squeezing it warmly.
He smiled. "I don't think it gets any better," he answered. She gave his hand a tug.
"Come on, there's a bunch of teens waiting for us to play GameWizard with them, and the boys even agreed to let you be on their team." He laughed, and let her lead him away.
"Maybe I'll thank them for their generosity by winning a match or two," he said quietly, and Ginny laughed.
"If you think you can," she answered.
The afternoon went by too fast, and it was already time for the children to open presents. Even the kids that had been here for a long time were thrilled when the gifts started swirling through the air, hundreds of packages doing their amazing, colourful dance as they were directed to each boy and girl, along with the pins and gemstones for the volunteers. All of those first year volunteers back in 2007 that had stayed volunteers with the foundation were getting their tenth emerald this Christmas. Harry was surprised to realize that next year there would be volunteers getting the first diamonds for their pins.
When the presents had all been opened, the cleanup was followed by Christmas dinner, and the show put on by the kids. By dinnertime, Teddy and Stewart had two shadows, and by the end of the show, one was asleep in Teddy's arms, and the other was sleeping in Isabelle's lap as she held him close while Stewart held her. Monday was a back to work day for most of the volunteers, so they started heading for home after the entertainment was over. Harry and Ginny said their goodbyes to everyone, and spent a few extra minutes with Aaron and Arianna, and then took James, Al, and Lily home to the cottage.
The week between Christmas and New Year's Day rushed past, even though Harry and the kids tried to just have some quieter days together before James had to go back to school. They did go to the Residence every morning for a Quidditch practice with Aaron, Arianna, and a few other Hogwarts students, and James had two more study days to get all of his work done, but they stayed away from Malls, and went to the island for two afternoons with Victoire, Isabelle, Aaron, Arianna, Carolyn, and Brianna.
Harry, Ginny, and the kids went to the New Year's Eve party at the Residence this year, and everyone had a great time. They went home shortly after midnight, because the students were going back to Hogwarts in the morning, and they'd need to be up early to get James ready, pick-up Aaron and Arianna, and get to King's Cross Station. Victoire and Isabelle would be getting to the train station with Bill, Fleur, Teddy, and Stewart, who all wanted to see them off.
The New Year started out bright and sunny, though very cold. James was not exactly the fastest, or most motivated packer in the world, so they didn't have much time for goodbyes at the station before the students all had to get on the train, and it pulled out of the station.
"Let's go home and I'll make lunch for everyone," Ginny suggested as she gently turned her wistfully smiling husband away from watching the empty space where the departing train had been, but had already rolled out of sight. Teddy and Stewart looked about the same as Harry did, already missing Victoire and Isabelle. Fleur laughed at the three men.
"That sounds like a great idea, Ginny," she said. "Seeing them get on the train is always the hardest part of saying goodbye when they go off to school."
They all left for the Cottage and Ginny's promised lunch. Teddy and Stewart were going to be leaving for another trip really early in the morning - this time in China, so they left for home shortly after lunch. Stewart was going to spend his time while they were in Asia touring the Residences in the area, and Teddy was going to work with the regional staff and volunteers for the food, work, and housing projects. Bill and Fleur stayed a little longer, enjoying a chance for a quiet visit with Harry and Ginny before heading home themselves, planning on a romantic dinner for two and a good night of sleep before a new year of work started in the morning.