Hey! Sorry this chapter took so long, I've been focusing on work and school so I haven't had a ton of time to write. Thank you everyone who reviewed! I loved reading them and using the feedback. Please keep reviewing I love to hear your thoughts!
"George!" His sister called up the stairs to him.
"Coming!" She heard a call from through the closed door. A moment later, George appeared in bright magenta robes, holding a matching set over his arm. "These are yours." He threw the robes at her.
"Why magenta?" She complained. "You know I hate pink."
"Why do you think I chose it?" He winked as she rolled her eyes.
"When's Verity getting here?"
"Um, I think soon. We open in a half hour. I told her to get here at least twenty minutes early."
"Ok. That sounds fine. We better have a crowd. It's not like we haven't advertised enough. It's been all over Diagon Alley and everywhere else."
"Eh, I wouldn't expect huge crowds today, since it is the first day. If we're going to have crowds, it'll be right before you lot go back to school. That's when I'll really need your help. Speaking of school," George segued as the duo added the finishing touches to the stocked shelves. "When is Harry going back?"
"The fifteenth," Ginny answered without looking away from the skiving snack boxes she was stacking on the top shelf. "The day before Ron starts training."
The siblings heard a little tinkle of the door and Verity walked in, her blonde hair shorter than Ginny had remembered it. She had a bright smile on her face and was wearing the robes that Ginny hadn't put on yet. "Hey, Verity!" George called her. "Gin, go get changed." Verity took her place as Ginny went to George's bathroom to change.
When she came back out, George was showing the new products to Verity. "Right. We have five minutes until the store opens. Ginny, you're on the cash register." Ginny nodded and took her place. "I'll be around helping customers, and I think we have a couple of demonstrations planned for this afternoon. Verity, you do whatever else needs to be done."
And that was that. At precisely 9 am, George propped the door open and put his sign out announcing the reopening. Today was going to be extraordinarily difficult without his best friend, but George knew this is what Fred would have wanted.
"What are your plans for the day, dears?" Mrs. Weasley was serving large helpings of bacon and eggs to the members of the golden trio who had just awoken.
"I think we might meet Neville and Luna and walk around Diagon Alley for a bit, maybe stop by George's grand opening." Hermione apparently was the only one who remembered the plan they had discussed last night as the boys just shrugged. "I think we said we'd meet them at ten. That gives us about an hour and a half to collect ourselves." She said slightly disdainfully with a glance at Ron who was on his second heap of eggs.
"Yeah, that's right. I forgot about that." Harry remembered, handing Teddy to Mrs. Weasley who wanted to hold him. An owl flew through the open window that was letting the warm summer air in. He flew towards Harry and dropped a letter, flying to perch on another window sill, awaiting a response. Harry opened it curiously, noticing the Hogwarts crest stamped on the back.
He looked up after reading and told them "McGonagall wants me there tomorrow. Damn."
"What happened?" Mrs. Weasley asked the question they were all wondering.
"Apparently there's some last-minute restoration to do and things of the sort. We start all of that on Monday and she wants me to have time to settle in. Especially with Teddy."
Hermione bit her lip in thought. "Wow, Harry. That's really soon."
"What about Ginny's birthday?" Ron brought the event back to Harry's attention.
"Shit," Harry said under his breath. "I guess I'll have to leave for a night and come for her party. That's this Tuesday, right?"
"Yeah. Don't let Ginny know you forgot the date." Ron teased Harry.
"I remember it's the 11th, you prat. I just forgot what day of the week." Harry defended himself.
"Well you all should be going, it's not getting any earlier. I'll take care of Teddy and the dishes." Mrs. Weasley shooed them from the table and started to charm the dishes into the sink.
"Thanks, mum," Ron called, already halfway out the door.
The trio apparated to Diagon Alley, where they planned to meet Neville and Luna. They saw the two from the other side of the bookstore where they had planned to meet. Hermione, of course, wanted to pick up a new book on NEWTS potions.
"Luna, Neville!" Harry called across the store, attracting their attention. The duo looked up and hurried over.
"Harry, Ron, Hermione!" Neville returned the greeting. "It's so good to see you guys!"
"How are you both?" Hermione asked as they joined them.
"We're good. We arrived early so Neville could help me get my school books." Luna gave the three a hug. "Aren't you excited to be going back to school, Hermione?"
"Yeah, thrilled, really," Hermione replied earnestly. "Did you hear Harry's coming back too?" Hermione continued conversationally as the five lazily strolled down Diagon Alley.
"That's wonderful Harry!" Luna turned to him. "You'll be in classes with Hermione, Ginny, and I."
"Well, not exactly." Harry corrected slowly. At Luna's confused look he continued. "I'm going to be the DADA professor."
"That's amazing, Harry!" Neville clapped him on the back. "How'd you get that job?"
"It's a long story, but basically McGonagall needed a professor, and I wanted to go back to school but my schedule wasn't anywhere near full. It's going to be a bit weird teaching you all and the rest of your year, but McGonagall thought it alright because of the DA."
"You'll be brilliant," Luna assured him. The five friends walked down the street, headed nowhere in particular. They attracted stares, most directed at Harry, as usual.
Somewhere along the way, Harry noticed Luna and Neville holding hands and grinned. "Wow. I'm really fifth wheeling here." Hermione looked at Neville and Luna and saw their hands intertwined. She also smiled.
"Poor Harry." She mocked him playfully. "We'll visit your girlfriend soon." Harry shot her a look.
"Since when are you and Luna a thing, Neville?" Ron was genuinely happy for his friend.
"Pretty much since after the battle." Neville squeezed Luna's hand.
"I'm happy for you guys." Hermione beamed at them. They continued down the street.
After a few minutes of comfortable silence, Neville spoke. "Where are we even going?" The group began to laugh. They had been walking with their own thoughts for almost five minutes, none knowing where their destination lay.
"I have no clue. Let's just walk around for a bit, maybe grab some ice cream." Ron suggested. "We can't get lunch yet and we wanted to visit George's later, so I think that's our best bet."
The foursome took his idea and walked around, catching up with each other, gossiping about Hogwarts, and just acting like teenagers who hadn't been through a war. At around 11:45, they decided to grab some lunch and headed to a secluded cafe at the end of the street. Harry had never been before, but Luna suggested it, saying their sandwiches were divine, and Neville confirmed. They walked through the door into a small room, several tables scattered neatly about. The walls were a light, dusty green color with white accents, lit by old-fashioned sconces. A rather short woman greeted them as they found their table. She had a distinctly American accent that was rarely heard around the area.
"I'm Lisa and I'll be your server today. I also own the cafe."
"Hi Lisa," Harry greeted tiredly as they all sat down and ordered their food.
A while later, empty plates and full stomachs in tow, the group left the quaint little cafe and headed back up the street to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. The street was gradually becoming more crowded, wizards and witches alike bobbing in and out of shops, continuing along the sun-bathed street. Even from a few blocks away, they could see the newly restored shop, colorful and loud yet again. They could see the bustle of the shop, people going in and out. The sound of laughter was carrying down the street. As they approached the store, they could clearly see just how crowded it was.
Walking inside, Harry immediately got in line, as his favorite cashier was working, the other four following him. The line was at least ten people long, so by the time they were second in line, they had been standing for nearly twenty minutes. Harry could see Ginny from around the customer and grinned at her magenta robes he knew she hated.
Ginny gave the customer a smile and thanked them for coming in as she handed him the bag he had purchased. She turned to the next customer, not paying attention to who it was, and was utterly shocked when he leaned forward and kissed her, just as she was about to ask him if he'd found everything he had been looking for. She looked up at him, expecting him to be some creepy guy and was about to go get George when she realized who it was.
"Gods Harry!" She gave him a reproachful look and then saw who he was with. "Neville! Luna! What a surprise! How are you both?" Neville and Luna responded politely until Hermione pointed out that a line was forming behind them. They all moved out of the way and Harry whispered something to Ginny, uncomfortable under the stares of multiple customers. Ginny nodded and called to George. "George, I'm taking my lunch break! Verity will cover the register!" She nodded to Verity stocking shelves, and the older girl replaced Ginny at her post. Harry and Ginny hurried to a back storage room, leaving the rest behind.
"Gin, I have to tell you something." He stopped her as she tried to kiss him. She looked slightly put out but looked up at him expectantly. "McGonagall wants me at Hogwarts tomorrow."
"Tomorrow?" She looked surprised. "Why tomorrow? I thought you had until the fifteenth? We were supposed to have a week."
"I know, I know. She wants us to get situated and there's a lot more work that needs to be done than she thought, especially with the lessons I'll have to catch up on." Harry replied, studying her expression. She didn't respond. "Anyway," He hurriedly continued, "I have to go tomorrow. I want you to come. I'm one of the first professors getting there so you can come and help me move in. We can make a day of it. It'll be just the three of us." He continued to look at her, falling silent. After a minute, she looked up at him.
"You know I'm happy for you, right?" He nodded. "It's just hard. I'm trying to be excited for you and all, I'm just going to miss you. Even when I see you in class, it's not the same."
"I know, Gin. I get it. I'm kind of dreading this entire year if we're being honest. Let's just focus on tonight and tomorrow. What time do you get off?"
Ginny rolled her eyes. "We close at six."
"What's with the eye roll?"
"Nothing." She smiled at him. "Come here." She held out her hand and Harry took it, pulling him close. She kissed him. Tenderly at first, but as Harry kissed back, it became more desperate, as though this would be the last one. As they kissed, their bodies came closer and they wrapped around one another. Finally, Ginny pulled away to get air, smiling at the boy in front of her.
"Do you know how gorgeous you are?"
"Gorgeous enough to get the Chosen One, apparently." Ginny grinned cheekily.
"Shut up." He pressed his lips against hers again, tracing them lightly with his tongue. Ginny opened her mouth slightly and allowed Harry's tongue to enter.
A minute later, the pair heard the door being opened and they separated just in time to see George enter the room. "Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to interrupt. I see you're enjoying your lunch, Gin." George smirked at her as he slipped past them to grab something off a shelf. Harry and Ginny stared intently at the floor while George maneuvered around boxes on the ground to access the shelf he needed to. Once he had gotten what he needed he turned back to the couple who had spaced themselves out slightly. They looked at George expectantly as he studied them. Finally, he broke the silence. "Well, got to get back to it. This has been fun." George walked to the door and stopped. He paused and then again faced them. "Look. I know I'm supposed to be in protective older brother mode here, but you guys are perfect together. I know just how serious you both are about the other and your relationship, so" he paused, looking uncomfortable. "Just don't do anything on my boxes." He didn't say anything else but flashed Ginny a wink and left the room.
"My lunch break is almost over anyway, and that was kind of a turnoff." Ginny found a mirror leaning against a wall and began adjusting her robes. She saw Harry in the mirror behind her as he wrapped his arms around her and began to kiss her neck.
"At least it wasn't Ron." He told her before nibbling her ear. She leaned into the touch. "God damn, I'm going to miss you."
"Stop, I don't want to think about that now." He was now licking and sucking her neck, making his way down her chest. She shuddered and pushed him off. "I have to get back to work. I'll see you tonight. I'm taking you out for your last night."
"Fine." They both adjusted their robes and hair. Harry turned to her as he exited the room. "I love you."
Harry discreetly walked out of the storage room to find the shop even more crowded than when they had entered. He looked around for his friends and found them gathered around a demonstration George was doing. He stood close to Hermione and she nudged him with her shoulder. "Have fun?" she whispered to him, out of earshot of the other members of their group.
"Shut it." He put his hands deep in his robe pockets as Hermione chuckled at him. Ron noticed Harry and the five left, Hermione winking at Ginny who had resumed her post at the cash register. The group walked out into the sunshine bathing the cobblestone alley.
"Neville, Luna." Hermione turned to them as the group reached their apparition point. She spoke in a low voice to keep from being heard by Harry who was walking ahead with Ron. "We're having a bit of a goodbye dinner for Harry tonight if you'd like to come. He doesn't know yet, We'll tell him in a bit."
"Yeah, that sounds like fun, we'll be there. What time should we get to the Burrow?"
"Probably around six."
Neville nodded. "See you then." He grabbed his girlfriend's hand and disapparated.
When the three friends arrived back at the Burrow, they were met with wonderful smells drifting out of the kitchen. "What's going on tonight?" Harry turned to his two best friends questioningly. They didn't respond but kept walking until they were in the kitchen with Mrs. Weasley.
Harry tried again. "Mrs. Weasley, what's happening?" She looked up from the tart she was preparing and smiled at him.
"We're having a few people come over to celebrate you going off to Hogwarts and teaching. Nothing huge, and Ginny made me promise that we'd be done early so you two can go out." She turned her attention back to her tart. As much as Harry didn't want to have to entertain the company and be the center of attention again, he always appreciated how much the Weasleys cared.
"Thanks, Mrs. Weasley. I really appreciate it." He told her sincerely. "Hey, where's Teddy?"
"He's upstairs, I expect he'll be waking up any minute." Harry nodded and quietly walked up the stairs to his best friend's room. He stood in the doorway, watching his godson sleep, his turquoise hair flattened against his forehead. He was wearing a light blue footie, and Harry could see his chest rise and fall as he slept. He really is perfect. How did I get so lucky? The older wizard thought, a small smile playing across his lips. Then Teddy started to stir, and he began to cry. Harry rushed over and scooped the small boy into his arms.
"Shhhh, it's ok Ted." He soothed. "I'm here, you're alright." He held the whimpering baby close to his chest, rocking him back and forth slowly. Here, let's get you in the bath. If there was one thing that always calmed Teddy down it was bath time, well, aside from Ginny. She was always able to calm the baby down. Harry chose an outfit for the boy and they headed up the creaky stairs to the Weasley's only bathroom. He filled the tub with an inch or two of warm water and set Teddy in the bath. Harry used his wand to conjure bubbles, Teddy's favorites. He had learned the spell a few weeks ago, and it never failed to make his godson giggle in the bath. As he laughed and splashed in the bubbles, his hair turned a bright purple, making Harry laugh with him. The older wizard sat back against the wall, his arms resting on the sides of the tub, closely monitoring the child. He contentedly watched the child play, the rubber duck Harry had gotten him, much to Mr. Weasley's fascination, bobbing in the water.
There was a soft knock on the door and Harry addressed it. At his permission, Ginny entered the room, scooting around the door and closing it behind her. "Hey!" He greeted her, surprised, as she sat down next to him.
"George let me go early." She explained. "I have a feeling that won't happen too often, but he knows I want to spend some time with my boys before they leave." She looked at Teddy as she said this, smiling as he grinned at her, again changing his hair to the trademark red on all the Weasley member's heads. He giggled as she played peek-a-boo, hiding her face behind her curtain of red hair. Harry watched his two favorite people play for a couple of minutes and finally reluctantly intervened.
"Ok, Ted. It's time to wash your hair and body. He scooted over to the tub and tickled Teddy, causing him to squeal. Ginny sat back and started to tell Harry a story about a customer that had hit on her at the shop today, only to annoy him, while Harry shampooed Teddy's hair, which had returned to his preferred turquoise color. Once Harry had finished washing and rinsing the toddler, Ginny handed him the towel that made the wearer look like a duck, and he scooped Teddy up into it, wrapping him tightly. He held Teddy's squirming body up to his mouth and blew raspberries on his belly, making him giggle even more if that was possible. They got Teddy dressed in a white and green striped onesie with jeans and a sweater with a hood that made him look like a dragon.
After that, the evening passed quickly. The party was intimate, though, with the size of the family, it still felt rather large. After a couple of hours, people started to wish Harry well and leave the Burrow, headed back to their homes. By nine, only the residents of the house still remained. "Mum, we're going out!" Ron called to her from his place on the couch. The four got up and walked out into the dusk. Teddy had been laid down an hour ago. He was starting to sleep through the night, though he was still waking up half the nights to eat. Harry hoped that wasn't the case tonight, at least until he got home, so Mrs. Wealsey didn't have to worry about feeding the baby. "Where are we going again, Hermione?" Ron brought Harry from his thoughts.
She sighed impatiently. "I told you, Ronald. You'll see when we get there." They had reached the end of the wards surrounding the house. "Now, grab my arm." The three did as they were told, and Hermione apparated to an alley by a busy muggle street. They quickly left the alley, Ron looking around nervously, and entered onto the street, surrounded by people. Hermione started at a brisk walk, the rest keeping up rather easily. They walked for about a block before Hermione turned into a crowded pub along the sidewalk.
"Why here?" Ginny voiced the thoughts of the three followers.
"I didn't want us to be recognized, but I still wanted to get out of the house and do something, just the four of us. We all know Harry's going to be too cool for us when we get back to school."
Harry gave her a look as they entered the bar. They found a table in the corner and sat down, waiting for the waiter to come around to their table. When the waitress did come, the group ordered their food. Once the waitress had walked away to get their drinks, Ginny got up and motioned for Hermione to stand up as well.
The older girl followed the younger through the pub headed toward the bathroom. Ginny went in to pee as Hermione leaned against a sink, staring at her reflection.
"Mione," Ginny called through the stall wall.
"Yeah." Hermione turned around, crossing her arms as she looked at the stall door where she assumed Ginny would be.
"I was just thinking, who do you think is the head boy?"
Hermione considered this for a second. "I'm not going to tell you I haven't been thinking about that, but I honestly have no idea. I would assume someone from your year because I think Harry and I are the only ones going back."
"That would make sense. I just can't think of anyone in my year who could possibly fit the bill." She giggled, thinking about the boys in her year. Colin was a prefect, and everyone thought he would be head boy, but obviously not now." Ginny got silent. Hermione waited for a response but when none came she asked
"Gin, you ok?"
"Yeah, I think so. Just miss him is all. We were really close."
"I know Gin, I'm sorry." Hermione had turned back around to look in the mirror as she heard a toilet flush and a stall open. The occupant came next to Hermione and began washing their hands, and Hermione turned to look at them, expecting it to be Ginny but gasped when she saw who it was.
Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Who do you think is in the bathroom with them?
I have a pretty good idea of what the next chapters going to look like so that probably won't take as long to write. Favorite, Follow, and Review!