Author's Note:
WOW! Just WOW!
Thank you so much!
I am completely blown away and AMAZED and HONOURED and HUMBLED by the fact that ASC has hit over 10,000 reviews! Just WOW! Nothing I've ever written has even come close to this (nor even hit 1000 reviews) let alone this much more! I am honestly just so amazed and so grateful.
I love you 10,000! :D :D :D :D
Reviews and Comments: To notthatchhavi: Thanks for loving my dragon song, I had fun writing it and sometimes I sing it to my nephew now haha. And no, Remus and Tonks don't get tired LOL. The Aunt Muriel bit was to show how much the potion has altered her that she thinks her great aunt is the fun one LOL. Thank you! I agree, Luna does have a way of talking which can make a person think without her telling them they are right or wrong. It is important that she didn't get angry and we'll come back to that later. Thank you! I wanted to show the process of how Hermione obliviated her parents without going through the process, haha, but I do think it wasn't something she decided on a whim, I think that she did try to convince them to go and was unsuccessful. Yes, Caroline does not deserve a daughter like Hannah. We'll see more to that story soon. To minerdude: Ha, can I speed up the antidote? Well, it does take a month, so… no. Thank you for being upset on Ginny's behalf though. And thank you for wanting to re-read, that's truly amazing to me!
To Nightwing2013: No, it's not to Hush Little Baby, but to Five Little Ducks. Forgetting her niece is just another aspect of how it altered her. I think Bones is devious and she has a plan in mind and she's definitely willing to use Harry to help her. Yes, Harry will be attending the wedding and yes, he will be in disguise. To Wolf's scream: It won't be like flipping a switch, but it won't exactly be a process either. Yes, Hermione does come by her stubbornness naturally. To R: Thank you! Checking every hour on Saturday seems a bit much haha! But I'm honoured that you're that excited to read the next chapter. As to the grammar, I couldn't do it without Dusk! An amazing and incredible Beta to help me with my mistakes — a better one I couldn't ask for. To WinkingSkeever: Will do. To ITHersey: I think it's what Luna does best and haha, no I don't plan how to break hearts every week — this chapter is actually very fun-filled, even comedic. To shivani: Thank you! The lovely people on the Harry/Ginny discord really helped me with my antidote ideas. I was asking for some ideas and went from there.
To dyte: I think you're brain just works that way as Luna and Ginny are just friends in my world! But I suppose that I can see the connection lol. To The Booknerds: I would hope everyone hates Hannah's mom, haha. And did she break up with Neville to save him from her mother… we will see. "Love how you keep so many storylines going at once. It adds so much depth and richness to the story that I've rarely seen elsewhere." — thank you! To Dianne: We will see about Dora soon enough. Ginny is very much confused and trying to make sense of it all. Luna is the best and exactly what Ginny needs for the moment. Voldemort being emasculated on Harry's birthday? Haha, well, we'll see. They haven't given up on rescuing Dumbledore, it's just that they don't know how to find him. Voldemort has him well hidden. Neville does deserve more. We'll see more of how that goes soon.
To xXMizz Alec VolturiXx: Thank you and I suppose that's a fair reason, but no Max Weasley is just a random Weasley cousin I invented lol. To Guest: I always imagine Ron's the tallest at around 195cm (as tall as Professor Lupin). Harry and Dean are roughly the same height around 187cm, Neville is 182cm and Seamus is the shortest at 177cm. To scrappy8: Thank you! And yes, poor Arthur is being blamed for something that he didn't even do. To Mutt N Feathers: I love Charlie and his baby too! And yes, poor Ginny, it's really messing with her mind! To Maggietp: Thank you! I'm happy to have given you some great moments of reading! To elin2002: Hannah's mother is a bitch and me neither! To Arctoid32: Thank you! And yes, Hannah's mother is awful! To yunkol76: Neville will definitely fight for Hannah! To hayamione: Thank you! Mrs Abbott is very selfish and we all hope Ginny doesn't try to kill Harry again. To DeadFish37: Not too sad, I promise.
To Nuno Neves: Thank you! I always love Remadora smut! I think seeing how Ginny's mind is processing things shows her experiences and talking to Luna was helpful. I think the boys hangout will be fun! To ValGrey02: Thank you! To tim2604: Neville is definitely the kindest and sweetest man in the world! Ginny is confused over what Luna tells her, but also trusting of Luna which is putting her in a predicament she doesn't understand and one that the potion isn't quite letting her comprehend. To Seriously Sam: Ginny grounding Harry and keeping him calm is definitely fact in every universe! Hannah is mortified and embarrassed and poor Neville is so confused! To RishIdea8: I'm sorry you feel this story has gotten to dramatic for you to finish reading after 281 chapters. But thanks for leaving one review to let me know you're quitting…
To Chintan: Yes, definitely so much for sweet Caroline lol! The song was most definitely not written about her! Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed the bit about Hermione's experience. To alix33: Nah, Ginny doesn't want to hurt Luna, just Harry. Good, I'm glad you found Caroline creepy. To Sloopyqueen4: Thank you! I miss Hinny too! To enigmanhi: Ginny's mind is very stressed and even pictures aren't going to help her. To Bumlewis: Remadora are definitely having a delightfully long weekend! I'm glad Ron was with Hermione as well. She needed him. I think Bones is more than happy to piss off Voldemort haha. And yes, Hannah is too loyal to her mum. To pix25: I love Luna's straightforwardness! To Steelcode: No Sleeping Beauty for Ginny, but interesting concept. Poor Harry, with his many names haha.
To AccioRxses: Thanks for reviewing! Hinny does need to make an epic return! It is suspicious on Hannah's part, but I promise it will all come together soon! To Cristina: I absolutely agree that a father can take of a child alone and Charlie is rocking at it! I believe Remus and Tonks are not only completely comfortable with each other, but they trust each other completely and that makes a huge difference! Thank you! I really wanted to show some insight as to what Ginny is going through. I agree, we all need friends who aren't afraid to speak their minds. As to Hannah, it is hard for someone who wants to be loved by their family to see that their family are manipulating them and Hannah needs to see that. To Guest: Sorry you think this story goes on and on and doesn't go anywhere. I think it's going exactly where it's supposed to go. I'm sorry you think that it's not worth your time. To mysuvone: Send Caroline to Miami? LOL. To Saz J: I know that you loved the filth haha. And poor Hannah, we'll see more of that later.
To Corgie813: Soon. To shuweet: I want them back together too. To Hellpony: Things are muddled for Ginny quite a lot. There are holes in her memory and while she remembers learning how to ride a horse and going surfing, Harry being there has been erased. To AQuickRead91: Ha, Augusta would definitely give Caroline a social smackdown haha! I don't know where her parents settled, but I imagine a big city like Sydney so that they would be more hidden. To QuietReader: Hannah and Neville do need to deal with her mother. To neumann: Hannah needs to figure things out indeed. To GryffindorHealer: I love your kudos! And thanks for coming back to re-read the Ginny/Luna scene. To JonathanRL: That is exactly what Hannah feels and she doesn't have a lot of self-worth or esteem so she is doing what she thinks is best. To Kikalarachaetos: Thank you for saying my writing is captivating!
To TheAnalyst1994: Thank you for saying ASC stands above other fanfics. To BadWolfKris: Thanks for catching up! And wow, reading 281 chapters in a week and a half is pretty impressive! To TatiRena: Thank you! I promise, Ginny will not be killed! I love writing the Weasley siblings (including Percy's naked spanked behind haha)! Thanks for the review! To marauders_mowopapr: It is nice to have Theo back! Thanks!
This chapter is a bit of an interlude and I think a bit of the comedic break we all needed — especially our boys!
My posting schedule: Weekly.
Thanks to Dusk for her amazing editing skills.
As always, thank you very much for reading and please, please review!
Your reviews give me life! They give me inspiration! And they make me want to keep writing for more than just myself! Thank you for all of your continued support!
CHAPTER TWO-HUNDRED AND EIGHTY-TWO:
Ginny had never been to a hen night before and she was finding it much more fun than she'd anticipated. Fleur didn't want anything crazy, so she insisted on something simple. Her friends Avril and Lizette planned it at Shell Cottage with help from Gabrielle and Fleur had invited Ginny to come along with Angelina, Audrey, Hermione, Molly, and Fleur's mother, Apolline. Fleur's bridesmaids had planned for food, drink, gifts, and fun.
The first thing that Ginny noticed was that they'd decorated the living room of Shell Cottage with streamers and dancing fairy lights. Avril insisted that everyone change upon arrival and Ginny smiled when she saw the women had picked out a gold silk bathrobe with black letters on the back that said: Bridesmaid. For Molly and Apolline they read: Mother of the Groom and Mother of the Bride. For Hermione, Angelina, and Audrey they read: Hen Night '97. Fleur's robe was white with gold lettering for the word 'Bride.'
"Go and change," Avril instructed. "And take it all off, girls, we'll be starting with full body massages."
"Ooh, that sounds lovely," Angelina said, accepting her robe.
Ten minutes later they were all dressed in their robes as Avril introduced three of her friends: Mei, Solange, and Felicity. They would be assisting them in their activities for the evening which included massages, facials, manicures, and pedicures with the option to have their hair done as well.
Ginny let out a contented sigh as Solange had her lie on the table she set up, a sheet draped over her behind as she was wonderfully rubbed down in lotion.
"Such tension," Solange said as she kneaded her shoulders.
Ginny only made a sound of agreement, thinking that it was the first time in weeks she felt at peace. After her talk with Luna, she'd been left with even more questions. She'd sat out by the pond thinking about the memories she had of her life and for the first time she realized that there were big holes in them. Holes that she hadn't noticed before. Like if her father gave her the diary, when had he done it? It hadn't been with her school things. It had just… been there, she remembered.
And Potter blaming the Chamber of Secrets on her, claiming it was her fault… how had she escaped? The last thing she remembered was Tom stepping out of the diary and then her parents with her in the hospital wing. And Michael… she didn't remember breaking up with him, let alone hexing him, but Luna insisted that it had happened over two years ago. She closed her eyes and tried to remember the last two years of her relationship with Michael, but there was nothing. There were no memories, just a knowledge that they were together. It didn't make sense.
Hermione made a squealing noise next to her and she opened one eye as she saw Mei massaging her friend.
"You okay over there?"
"She is tighter than anyone I've ever seen," Mei declared. "You must relax more! Let me take the tension away."
Ginny tried not to smirk as Hermione only nodded. Hermione was always tense. She worked so hard and studied so much, Ginny didn't know how she found time to sleep. But since she'd come to the Burrow a few days ago, Ginny had noticed a melancholy had come over her. Twice Ginny had woken in the night to find Hermione's cot empty and she'd wondered if her friend was sharing her bed with her brother.
Hermione hadn't said much about coming to stay the rest of the summer at the Burrow outside of her parents having agreed to go on an extended holiday until it was safe for them to return. Arthur and Bill had pressed her for more details but Ron had scolded them. He said that it was hard enough for Hermione to see them go and she just needed to know that they were away from everything. They had stopped asking questions and Ginny hadn't missed the grateful look Hermione had given Ron. She was pretty sure the two of them were hiding something, but it wasn't like either of them had bothered to confide in her.
Not to mention that both of them disappeared for hours at a time to help Harry with something, once again leaving her alone at the Burrow and not part of the group. She felt anger surge through her again at the thought and it was only Solange kneaded down her spine did she start to relax once more. She had to keep calm and focus on being calm, that's what Luna had said. Calm, she thought, relaxing, mediation. Focus…
It must have worked because she fell asleep to the feel of Solange's hands massaging her body and when she came to, the woman was smiling at her.
"Limp as a noodle. Go on."
Ginny slid off the table, putting her robe back on and made her way back into the living room where she was given a chair and Felicity immediately conjured a bath for her feet. She purred as her feet and calves were rubbed before they started on her nails. She listened with half an ear as Avril asked Fleur about Bill.
"You remember we met at ze Triwizard Tournament at 'ogwarts," Fleur said as she let her nails dry. "Zen again when I started at Gringotts."
"Did you like him right away?" Angelina asked. "I remember the first time I saw Bill, I fancied him. That sexy fang in his ear and the little curse breaker tattoo on his wrist… I was at the Burrow and he'd been doing something for Mrs Weasley in the yard, shirtless, sweat dripping down that magnificent back. I was fourteen and he was so sexy."
Fleur chuckled. "He is very good looking, oui. Ze first time I saw him I couldn't resist looking at his derrière. It was magnifique!"
"He takes after his father," Molly said, sipping the champagne in her glass. "Arthur was always so handsome when we were in school. He's tall like my brothers were, too. He always reminded me of my brother Fabian, that easy charm and big smile. I always said he could charm a bear out of a pot of honey."
"Oui, he is very charming," Fleur agreed.
"When did you two start dating?" Audrey asked.
"Not as soon as I would have liked," Fleur admitted.
"That's because I raised a perfect gentleman!" Molly interrupted as Ginny rolled her eyes. "Don't roll your eyes at me, young lady! Bill is a perfect gentleman! All of my boys were taught to treat the people they meet with respect, especially someone they fancy."
Fleur smiled. "Oui, Mrs Weasley, Bill is a perfect gentleman, almost frustratingly so. I flirted, but he was very stubborn. He kept insisting zat we were co-workers and zat we had to be professional, but he would get so cross when someone hit on me. I 'oped when we were in Anguilla he might have kissed me, but non. It did not happen until the fall, but it was worth ze wait."
Ginny smiled at her soon-to-be-sister-in-law in three days. "I told Bill that he was smitten with you before we went to Anguilla. He claimed otherwise and said you were only friends."
"I changed his mind," Fleur said.
Molly hiccoughed from her champagne. "I changed Arthur's mind once upon a time. I fancied him something awful and he wouldn't even give me the time of day until the summer before fourth year when I finally got my growth spurt. He certainly couldn't keep his eyes off my breasts then."
"Mum!" Ginny exclaimed.
Molly gave her daughter a pointed look. "Where do you think you get your great assets from, Ginny? I was a dish."
Audrey laughed. "I bet you were. How did you get your husband to notice you?"
"Well, I flirted shamelessly, of course," Molly said, drinking more champagne. "I used to toss my hair over my shoulder with the top three buttons undone on my shirt and just give him a slow smile. Once he walked right into a wall."
"This is getting better and better," Audrey said.
"Dad walked into a wall?" Ginny asked, feeling a bit intrigued by the story.
"More than once," Molly admitted. "I kept flirting and dropping hints about the upcoming Hogsmeade trip and he just seemed oblivious. Until finally, my best friend at the time, Peggy, called out, 'Weasley, do you want to snog the girl or not?' Your father turned beet red and then those blue eyes locked on mine and he said: Yes. So, I grabbed him by his tie and I locked my lips on his."
Audrey and Angelina cheered as Avril and Lizette giggled.
"How did he react?" Avril asked.
Molly gave them a knowing look. "He was smart enough to ask me to Hogsmeade and that, ladies, is ancient history."
"How long have you been together?" Hermione asked.
"Oh, we've been together since '67, married twenty-seven years as of the thirtieth of June. I wouldn't trade a moment of it," Molly said, a soft smile on her face.
Fleur smiled at the Weasley matriarch. "I only hope Bill and I will still be that happy in twenty-seven years."
Molly happily accepted another glass of champagne. "The secret they say is to never go to bed angry, but that's not always plausible. I say the secret is trust, mutual respect, and communication. Fantastic sex certainly doesn't hurt," she added with a wink.
"Mum!" Ginny exclaimed, her cheeks reddening.
"Oh, shush, Ginny," Molly said, waving her champagne glass around. "I have seven children, obviously your father and I have a fantastic sex life. I'm sure my boys all take after their father. Arthur's always been very giving and such stamina, well, I'm sure you girls know."
Angelina and Audrey giggled, their glasses clinking together.
Fleur looked thoughtful. "Oui, oui, Bill is definitely a wonderful lover. Ze sex is stupendous."
"See," Molly said, hiccoughing again.
"Why don't we get you some water, Mrs Weasley?" Lizette offered, helping Molly in the kitchen. "I think you've had a bit too much champagne."
Ginny turned to Hermione. "Mum must never be allowed champagne. That was more about her and dad than I ever cared to learn."
Hermione bit her bottom lip. "She's not wrong though. Ron is very giving and his stamina is quite impressive."
Ginny groaned. "Not the point, Hermione. Do you want to hear about your parents' sex lives?"
"Er, no," Hermione admitted, sadness coming across her face. "But I don't want to talk about my parents and besides, your mum is very intoxicated. You know she'd never be saying half of that otherwise."
"True," Ginny agreed, looking over at her mother's flushed cheeks.
Hermione turned to say something to Angelina and Ginny tried not to scowl. She knew Hermione was keeping something from her, but she didn't know what it was. News of brother's sexual stamina certainly wasn't it.
Ginny focused on the magical hands taking care of her feet as Fleur told her friends when she knew she was in love with Bill. It was all familiar to Ginny, the stories of how they met, when they started dating, and the more Ginny focused on Fleur's words, the more she realized that there were no holes there. Everything she knew about Bill and Fleur was perfectly intact. It seemed to make the holes in her memory stand out to her even more and she felt herself tensing up again.
Felicity stroked her thumb down the arch of her foot and she let out a slow sigh. Relax, she told herself; just relax.
Lizette poured them all more champagne as their toes were all painted a metallic glittery gold to match their bridesmaid dresses. Hermione chose a bright sky blue for herself, Angelina a bright red, and Audrey hot pink since they weren't standing in the wedding. Ginny smiled as Felicity began to work on her nails, complimenting her on her lovely upkeep of them and how much she adored the simple French manicure, which they would all be wearing for the wedding anyway, but with the same metallic glittery gold on the tips.
Once Mei and Solange began to give them facials with blueberries and chamomile, Fleur began to open her gifts. It seemed that almost everyone had brought her some naughty lingerie from silk and lace teddies to matching bras and knickers, including white lace knickers that said "Mrs Bill Weasley" on the bum (which made everyone giggle). Fleur received a nice big sun hat for her honeymoon along with a white bikini covered in dark cherries. There was a matching Mr and Mrs cotton bathrobe, a basket full of different scented and flavoured massage oils, and lastly Ginny passed her the small blue box.
"This is from Bill."
Fleur looked surprised at this, her eyes on the box. "From Bill?"
Ginny nodded. "He asked me to bring it to you tonight. He said that it's a gift for his bride to wear on her wedding day."
Fleur carefully opened the lid and the beautiful pearl and diamond leaf bracelet twinkled up at her. "Mon Dieu! C'est magnifique!"
She pulled it out of the box to show everyone with a big smile on her face.
"What a lovely surprise!" Angelina exclaimed.
Molly smiled. "Bill always did have excellent taste."
Fleur stroked the bracelet before she shook her head, tears in her eyes. "He thinks he will lose me because of his scars. I told him zat I do not care, but he is… he is stubborn."
Lizette and Avril each linked their arms with Fleur and she smiled gratefully at them.
"Zey do not take away his beauty, do zey?" Fleur asked.
Lizette shook her head. "I certainly don't think so. Are zey alarming at first glance? Oui, but zen one takes a moment to look into his eyes and his nice body and well, non, zey say to me zat he is very brave."
"Oui!" Fleur exclaimed. "Exactement!" She carefully hooked the bracelet onto her wrist, a soft smile on her face. "I cannot wait to become his wife."
Avril popped open another bottle of champagne with a smile. "A toast to ze bride to be!"
Everyone drank with big smiles as Apolline Delacour told them how she had fallen in love with her husband. Molly soon joined in with more of the story about her and Arthur's courtship. It wasn't long before Avril began to give out hair tips as more champagne was poured. Ginny smiled when she saw Hermione's bushy locks being washed by Avril.
"Do you always have zis many knots?"
"Yes," Hermione admitted. "I've lost track of how many hairbrushes I've broken. But when it's long, it's just easier to manage because of how thick and unruly it gets."
"Oui, ze long hair suits you, but let me help."
Hermione nodded and soon her long chestnut hair was brushed glossy, tumbling down her back in careless waves to her behind. "Wow! This looks amazing! How did you get it to stop being such a bushy mess?"
Avril smiled. "It was nothing. I will show you how to do it. It doesn't take long at all."
Hermione looked skeptical, but nodded. Soon more champagne was flowing, music was playing and they were dancing and enjoying themselves. Ginny let herself out the back and slipped out onto the beach, burying her toes in the sand. She turned when someone sat next to her and she was surprised to see that it was Audrey.
"Fun bunch in there," Audrey said, burying her own toes in the sand. "I was surprised that Fleur invited me, but I'm happy I came."
"She asked me what I thought and I told her it made sense to invite her future brother-in-laws' significant others."
"Well, thanks for that. It's been a very nice night."
Ginny nodded her eyes on the ocean as the waves crashed against the beach down below. "Everyone keeps staring at me and waiting for me to explode or something. This was a nice change."
"No one is waiting for you to explode, Ginny," Audrey said carefully. "Percy explained how they're just worried about you. This bloodlust potion thing is dangerous, not only to those around you if you lose control, but to you. It's altering your mind and it's chipping away at your soul."
"It seems like my soul and I are just not meant to stay together. First with the diary and now this… what did I do to deserve this?"
"I can't answer that," Audrey admitted. "But what I can say is that Percy cares about you very much and he just wants what's best for you and finding this antidote is it. Percy says that it's coming along."
Ginny grimaced. "Everyone keeps… I don't remember being given this potion, Audrey. I don't remember it. I don't remember Potter being…" her hands clenched at her sides. "I want him dead. I want him dead more than I've ever wanted anything in my life and my brothers are telling me that I'm in love with him. It doesn't make sense. It's like I can't trust myself and I don't know who I can trust when I can't trust my own mind."
"It will all make sense," Audrey assured her. "Do you trust your brothers?" At her look, she grinned. "Let me rephrase that, do you trust your brothers when it comes to keeping you safe?"
"Yes," Ginny said, tears in her eyes. "I will always trust them with that."
Audrey smiled. "Then trust them this time. I promise you won't regret it."
Audrey squeezed her shoulder before she stood up and headed back into Shell Cottage. Ginny watched her go before she turned back to the ocean. She did trust her brothers. She trusted them explicitly, but the problem right now was that she didn't fully trust herself.
And no one seemed to quite understand how terrifying a notion that truly was.
~ ASC ~
Harry looked up from his spot on the sofa, Mina in his arms, as Neville came in through the fireplace. Neville and Ron had made plans to come over tonight to hang out with him and he was looking forward to it. The last few days after getting the antidote started, the meeting with the Ministry, and just doing what he could to help out Zee and the twins was making him wish for some time to himself. Some time to just be himself and let loose a little. He needed some time where he would stop thinking about Ginny and how worried he was about her.
As bad as it was, he was nervous for Bill and Fleur's wedding in a few days. Mr and Mrs Weasley had decided that he still could come, but he had to go in disguise so as not to anger Ginny when she inevitably caught sight of him. Tonks was going to disguise him using her Auror skills and make him look deceptively not like Harry Potter.
Harry didn't care what he ended up looking like. He just wanted a chance to observe Ginny, to see her. Just the sight of her would be a welcome distraction, one that he wasn't ready to let go of just yet. Merlin, he missed her. He felt like the longer he went with her under this terrible influence, the harder it was for him to breathe, the harder it was for him to function.
It wasn't just that she hated him, that hurt, but he could deal with that. It was the memory changes, the way she wanted to kill him on sight, and most of all, the way everyone else gave him looks of pity when he asked about her. He just wanted to help her; to stop this potion from hurting her, because it was hurting her in ways that she didn't even know. And if in the end, it meant she didn't want to be with him anymore… it would break him, but if she was happy, that's all that mattered.
He pushed his thoughts from his mind and managed a smile for his friend. "Hey, Nev," Harry said as his friend sat next to him.
"Hi, Harry. Hi, Mina."
The baby cooed at him and Neville smiled.
"Wow, she's gotten big. Where are Zee and Leo?"
"Nappy change upstairs," Harry supplied. "I'm glad you're here. Trying to grow a beard?"
Neville nodded, running a hand over his face where a week's worth of stubble had come in, surprising him at how thick it was. "No, I just… have had things on my mind. I could use some advice from you blokes. When's Ron coming?"
"Should be any minute," Harry said.
"Dean and Seamus?"
"Seamus' sister was getting married today."
"Ah, right," Neville said. "She's marrying that American and Seamus has to wear a top hat. Sounds like he'll have some stories from that."
"Or a hundred," Harry said, making his friend laugh.
The fireplace lit up and to Harry's surprise, Ron and Theo came out together.
"Theo, hi," Harry said.
Ron put his hand on Theo's shoulder. "He came over to see Ginny and she deserted him for Fleur's little hen night. Hope you don't mind that I invited him along."
"No, of course not," Harry said as Zee came downstairs holding Leo.
"Hello, boys," she said with a smile. "And what's our plan for the night?"
"Drinking," Ron said.
Zee frowned. "Oh, really?"
"Zee, I'll be seventeen in two days," Harry said as he handed her Mina.
Zee accepted her daughter from him before she nodded. "You four behave yourselves. And don't you dare leave this house for any reason. I won't have you drunk lunatics wandering about. Ron, you're in charge of keeping them from killing themselves."
"Why me?" Ron whined.
Zee merely raised an eyebrow. "Because otherwise I'll tell your mother."
Ron paled. "Right, no killing themselves. On it."
"And drink lots of water. We're in the middle of a bloody awful heat wave and even with night falling, it's still hot as hell out there," Zee told them.
"Noted," Ron said.
Harry kissed her cheek and nodded towards his friends who followed him out into the garden. The sun was just starting to set, but Zee was right, it was still unseasonably warm out there. Theo's eyes widened when he saw the treehouse.
"Holy Helga! You had this as a kid?"
Harry nodded. "Yeah, Uncle Siri built it for me with help from Ted Tonks."
Theo ran up the stairs to the main house in amazement. "This is brilliant!"
Harry had to agree as he watched Ron and Neville lead them way up to the pirate ship to make themselves comfortable. Ron conjured blankets, pillows, and a sofa for them to sit on as Neville took one of the bottles of whiskey from Theo's bag. Harry accepted the glass his friend poured him and held it up to toast his friends before knocking it back and pouring himself a second glass.
"Is this an early birthday present for you then, Harry?" Theo asked. "Certainly looks like you're starting early. That's aged twelve years smooth whisky. Enjoy it."
Harry shrugged as he took a sip of his second drink. "I don't have anything to celebrate. Ginny hates me. Dumbledore's still missing. Snape's in the wind. We have no freaking idea what's going on outside of the fact that I've agreed to be a fucking poster boy for the Ministry of Magic."
Theo raised an eyebrow. "A poster boy? Surely not."
"Yup," Harry said, taking another drink from his freshly poured cup. "The Chosen One, the one who Voldemort can't defeat… Minster Bones is hoping it draws him out."
Ron snorted. "And makes him want to kill you even more. Right brilliant idea that is, Harry."
Harry glowered at him. "I had to do something and you know what, I'm okay with this plan. If it draws him out, it means that we can try to get a hold on all of this… stuff and whatever it is that he's doing."
"Well, I can see why you chose to do it," Theo admitted. "Has your summer been that terrible though?"
"Ginny tried to kill me, Theo. Twice," Harry said, pointing to the cut on his bottom lip. "The second time she damn well almost tore my lip off."
"You did try to kiss her," Ron said.
"Still, having one's girlfriend try to murder you, isn't exactly conducive to a good summer, is it? You lot have it way better!"
"Hannah broke up with me," Neville mumbled before he took a drink.
"Draco admitted to me that he chose to let Finn die to protect me," Theo said. "He just chickened out in the end and… well, his grandfather finished the deed."
The three of them gave Theo a sympathetic look before Ron said, "Hermione said that it's obnoxious when I chew my food with my mouth open."
Neville, Harry, and Theo all turned to glare at Ron who turned redder than his hair.
"What? I can't say everything is great when you're all clearly miserable! I was just trying to be sympathetic!"
"Go home, Weasley," Theo said, shaking his head. "You're far too happy to be in this group of depressed misfits."
"Haha, Zee put me in charge you know."
"That's only because she didn't realize what a wanker you are," Neville said, helping himself to some more whiskey.
Ron smirked. "Not anymore." At his friend's look, he grinned widely. "Hermione and I had sex."
Neville's mouth dropped open. "We're all bloody miserable and you drop that bombshell? I agree with Theo, go home."
"No," Theo said, leaning back on the blankets that he was sprawled out on. "I want to hear more about Weasley losing his virginity."
"Piss off," Ron muttered.
Theo grinned. "Ah, come on now, you can't share that and then not give the details. I'm big on details."
"It was grand, all right? It happened the first time on the night we won the Cup. I made her swear."
Theo raised an eyebrow. "Is that significant?"
"Considering how many times a day Hermione lectures him on swearing, I'd say so," Harry told them. "It's bloody hot out here. Anyone else hot?" He pulled his tee shirt over his head, tossing it off, and sighing as the hint of a cool breeze washed over him.
Ron watched Harry pour himself another drink. "Harry, mate, you're going to be sloshed in thirty minutes if you don't slow down."
"Don't care," Harry mumbled. "Is no one else hot?"
"No, it is hot out here," Neville agreed, pulling his own shirt over his head.
Theo whistled. "Nice arms, Longbottom. Weasley, take off your shirt, too."
Ron rolled his eyes. "Piss off. Just because these two are already halfway sloshed doesn't mean I'm going to let you ogle me as well."
"You wish," Theo said, taking his own shirt off. "Really, these two are thinking. It is bloody hot out here. You think now that the sun's set, it would have cooled off."
Harry murmured in agreement. "Bloody weather can't even cooperate."
Theo gave Harry a sympathetic look. "Let's get back to Weasley and Granger having sex. I want details."
"I don't," Harry mumbled. "Knowing they did it is more than enough than I ever needed to know."
"Oh, shush," Theo said, turning his attention to Ron. "So, you made her swear?"
Ron's lips curved. "It was amazing, okay? She was great. She's… she's brilliant and gorgeous and way too bloody good for me."
"She's not," Harry said. "You two belong together."
"He gets mushy when he's drunk," Neville said, clinking his glass with Harry's. "And listen, mate, I'm glad your shagging Hermione and all that, but some of us have just been ditched and don't appreciate your bragging."
Ron frowned. "Right, sorry, Nev. What happened? You and Hannah seemed so happy."
"I don't know," Neville admitted. "I surprised her at her home and she… she was angry and then… she told me that I was sweet and kind and that we couldn't see each other anymore. It came out of the blue!"
Harry stared at him. "You must have done something."
"Her mother is… odd," Neville said, slowly. "There's something there, I don't get, and it clearly made Hannah uncomfortable that I met her, but I don't know why."
Theo frowned. "Well, I don't know you very well, but coming from someone who had a shitty father, sometimes it's embarrassing when other people realize how terrible our parents are."
"What do you mean?" Neville asked, turning his gaze on Theo.
"It's just… people expect parents to be a certain way and sometimes it's easier to fake it. The less people who know about how terrible your parents are and how terrible your life is at home, the better it is. I just stopped going home as much as possible; stayed with Draco or Blaise. I mean, my father was abusive and well, an arse, but I didn't want people to know that. It took a lot for me to realize how terrible he was and to step out and away from him. Maybe Hannah hasn't realized how to do that yet."
Neville looked like he wasn't sure what to make of that.
"Yeah, but your father was a Death Eater," Ron said, slowly. "Nev doesn't think Hannah's mum is a Death Eater, right?"
"Well, no," Neville said, carefully. "She's definitely not a Death Eater."
Harry fiddled with the edge of the blanket he was lying on as he spoke. "Uncle Sirius once told me that unfortunately the world can't be divided up between good people and Death Eaters. Maybe Hannah's mum is just one of those other kinds of people?"
"I don't know," Neville said. "I mean, I've never seen her hurt Hannah before. She's not like, abusing her or anything."
"Yeah, it's not like she comes back to school with a black eye or something?" Ron said. "Maybe her mum's just a bit mental."
Theo looked at them over his drink. "There's abuse other than the physical kind, you know."
Neville looked thoughtful. "I don't know and maybe it's not even about her mum, it's just that one minute she was happy to see me and the next she was telling me that I was kind and sweet and when I kissed her she… then she was breaking up with me."
"When you kiss her, she what?" Theo asked.
"She didn't finish," Neville admitted. "But I know that's not the problem."
Ron wiggled his nose. "How do you know? You could be a terrible snogger, Nev."
"No," Neville said. "I know that's good between us."
"How?" Theo asked.
"There's this… connection," Neville explained. "I don't know, but trust me, that's not the problem. She said that I made her feel like a melted marshmallow."
Ron didn't look convinced. "What does that even mean?"
Theo chuckled. "I believe it means that Neville made her cry out his name."
Neville blushed. "Er, yes, and trust me, she rather enjoyed that."
"I bet she did," Theo said with a smirk.
Harry lay back on the blanket to stare up at the night sky. "Girls are complicated."
"That's why you should go for blokes," Theo cut in. "Cocks are so much better."
"You of all people know it doesn't work like that," Neville said.
Theo stretched out on the blanket next to Harry, his eyes on the sky. "True. So, what's the plan for the night, gents? Are we having ourselves a contest on who's more miserable then?"
"Absolutely not!" Ron insisted, standing up to refill all of their drinks. "We're not going to sit here and be miserable. Harry, Nev, and I will be getting our Apparition tests in two days. Then my brother's getting married. Then a few days after that, Ginny will have the antidote. We need to be optimistic!"
"Why didn't you take your test in June with everyone else?" Theo asked.
Neville's lips curved. "He forgot his eyebrow."
"One bloody eyebrow!" Ron exclaimed. "One! I mean, come on!"
"Hey, that's still an important part of you. You don't want to splinch yourself," Theo reminded him.
"But an eyebrow?"
Theo shrugged. "It still counts. Imagine if it was something worse like a fingernail or a finger. I once heard one of my father's friends say that they knew a bloke who Apparated while he was drunk off of his gourd and splinched his bollocks. I say better safe than sorry, you know?"
Ron grimaced. "Fine, fine. But I'm going to pass it this time!"
Harry accepted the whiskey from Ron. "Eyebrows and all." When Ron merely held up two fingers, he grinned. "I'm going to get food."
"I'll help," Theo volunteered as he followed Harry down from the treehouse.
Harry headed into the kitchen with Theo behind him as he opened the ice box to see what was inside that he could throw together for them. Theo helped him grab bags of crisps along with some tins of biscuits before Harry spoke.
"So, is that where you went?"
"What?" Theo asked, looking up at Harry in bewilderment.
"Ron said that you've been gone and you said that Draco admitted it so, is that where you went, to see them?"
Theo stared at Harry for a moment before he answered. "So what if I did?"
"I'm not accusing you of anything, Theo. I know they're your friends and you care about them."
Theo let out a slow breath. "I just needed to see them. I need to make sure they were… I needed to hear it from them."
"And what's the plan now?" Harry asked. "Are they coming back?"
Theo shook his head. "No. Not anytime soon. If he finds out they're alive, he'll kill them. It's better if they stay gone. They're safe where they are."
"Yeah, it probably is," Harry admitted. "Grab a few of those fizzy drinks to bring out."
Theo reached for the fizzy drinks. "Look, I know it seems stupid for me to have gone out to see them after everything that happened, but I needed to know."
Harry nodded. "Nah, I get it. I probably would have done the same thing."
Theo gave him a grateful look as they loaded up their arms with snacks and drinks. "Hey, if we're going to take our minds off being miserable I think that we should play Strip Poker?"
"No," Harry said.
"Aw, come on, Potter, worried I'll see you in your pants?"
Harry gave him a look that made Theo's smile widen. "No. I'm worried I'll have nightmares from seeing everyone else's."
Theo grinned as they headed outside and back up to the ship. "Who's in for a game of Strip Poker? Harry's idea!"
"It wasn't my — bloody hell," Harry grumbled as he settled the food in between them all. "Sod it! Let's play. Loser has to take a shot."
"First one down to their knickers has to take three," Theo said.
"Why do we need to be naked?" Ron whined. "Drinking works for me and clothes should stay on."
Theo's eyes twinkled at him. "Gives you more incentive not to lose."
Neville knocked back the whiskey in his glass before he opened a bag of salt and vinegar crisps. "Whatever, it's bloody hot out here anyway, I'm in."
Harry pulled out a deck of cards from one of the drawers near the steering wheel. "Me too. Deal."
Ron rolled his eyes as he looked up at the sky. "I take it back. I don't want to be responsible for you drunk lunatics."
Theo stuck his tongue out at him. "Shut up and deal the cards, Ron."
And for the first time since his summer holiday had begun, Harry felt lighter and thought there was nothing better than good friends and good whiskey.
~ ASC ~
Harry woke to the early morning sun blinding him and making his head pound. His mouth tasted like sawdust and he groaned, turning into the pillow. A low chuckle made him open one eye.
"Rough night, Harry?"
He scowled at Ron as his friend passed him his glasses. He shoved them on his face as things came into focus. They were still on the pirate ship. Theo was sleeping curled in a ball in just his boxers by the steering wheel with two fluffy pillows. Neville was snoring on the lower part of the deck, sprawled across one of the blankets on his stomach, completely naked. Harry's gaze met Ron's and saw his friend was sitting on the sofa he'd conjured the night before wearing boxer shorts himself and holding a tall glass of water.
"Drink?"
Harry accepted the water, the coolness of it soothing his raw throat before he rubbed his face. He looked around his own makeshift bed on the pile of blankets next to the sofa Ron was sitting on and was surprised to find himself naked.
"Why am I naked? Why is Neville naked? Gah, my head!"
"Well," Ron began. "You and Neville decided that you were madly in love and just had to have each other last night."
Harry rolled his eyes. "Please, that didn't happen. And can you not be so bloody loud? Why are you shouting?"
Ron laughed, making Harry's head feel like it was going to split into two. "I'm talking at my normal, rather sexy, level of volume. You're just too pissed to hear or think straight."
Harry glowered. "Just tell me what really happened last night?"
Ron grinned. "All right, well, after getting ridiculously sloshed in just over two hours, we were playing Poker and when we ran out of whiskey, you decided that Theo's idea of stripping down was a good plan. You became even more confident when I lost everything but my pants, and then you lost."
"I lost?" Harry repeated.
Ron nodded. "You lost and you had to take it all off. Not only did you have zero qualms with this, but you then ran over to the wheel of the ship and proclaimed yourself The Chosen One. You declared that Voldemort wanted to kill you because you had a bigger cock than he did. Theo and Neville were laughing hysterically as you proclaimed it was in fact the size of both of your cocks that made Voldemort consider each of you for death so many years ago as Neville cheered in agreement and it took me ten minutes to get you both to settle down. You finally passed out around one. Neville decided that he needed to ask Theo for advice and stripped down again before he proceeded to tell me and Theo all about how Hannah compared his bollocks to Seamus' vase and said his were better because something about symmetry? I didn't care for elaboration. It took the two of us twenty minutes to get him to go to bed and once he was finally passed out around two, Theo proceeded to hug me. He told me that he loved me for inviting him over because as much as he loved being one of the girls, it was nice to be respected by blokes sometimes. Then he kissed me on the cheek and fell asleep in my arms. It was hell to get him into his own bed. Next time, I'm the one getting sloshed and you're the one that has to deal with you idiots."
Harry grimaced. "Did I really say I have a bigger cock than Voldemort?"
"You did," Ron said. "And then felt the need to wave it around as you did."
Harry drank more water. "Sorry, mate."
Ron shrugged. "Not the first time I've seen you naked, but I'd really love it to be my last."
Harry snorted. "Clothes?"
"Around," Ron told him. "I already went down to the house to tell Zee you all survived the night. She's whipping up a huge greasy breakfast."
He nodded, finding his boxers and tugging them up as he yawned. "I feel like there are little elves nailing things into my skull."
"Well, between the three of you, you polished off two bottles of whiskey," Ron told him. "I only had two drinks."
Harry nodded again as he finished finding his clothes and pulled his shirt over his head. "I need to use the loo."
"I'll get these tossers up and meet you in the kitchen."
Harry gave him a grateful look before he trudged down the stairs and into the back door. Mina and Leo were both sitting in highchairs at the kitchen table as Zee was grilling up bacon, eggs, and sausages. The smell hit him and his stomach grumbled loudly.
"Good morning, sweetie," Zee said, giving him a knowing smirk. "How's your head?"
He made a noncommittal grunt that made her chuckle.
Harry made his way upstairs to his bathroom and after taking a minute to himself decided he needed a shower and stood under the hot spray in happiness. After finding fresh clothes and cleaning his teeth, he made his way back downstairs to find Ron, Theo, and Neville eating full plates of scrambled eggs, toast, bacon, sausages, and potatoes. Zee immediately levitated the plate she'd kept warming for him over and he took a seat.
"So, your friends say that they had a good time," Zee prompted.
"We did," Harry told her. "The shower helped, but my head still feels… it's pounding."
Zee smiled. "Well, lesson learned. Drinking yourself into oblivion has consequences."
"That's what Sobering Potion is for," Theo told her.
Zee raised an eyebrow. "Yes, I suppose it is. Too bad we don't have any here in the house. If only Harry was of age to go buy some..."
"Zee, please," he groaned.
She laughed. "No!"
"I'll watch the babies."
"Consequences, Harry," Zee said as she scooped up some mushy cereal to feed Mina and Leo.
Harry scowled across the table at his friends.
"Mate, it really sucks that you're not seventeen until tomorrow," Ron said, stretching his arms up over his head. "Too bad none us are of age or anything... oh, wait..."
Theo cackled. "That's cruel, Weasley, even for you."
"Well, I'm the one who got stuck babysitting you drunks, I'm not coughing up the coin for a sobering potion."
"I'll buy it," Theo said, winking at Harry. "It will be my thanks for last night."
Harry choked on his eggs and Neville slapped him on the back.
"Can you get extra for us other suckers?" Neville asked as Harry drank orange juice to try to catch his breath.
Zee raised an eyebrow. "No, he will not be. None of you will be going to get a sobering potion. In fact, I could use a hand today and since I have four such strong strapping young men here, I'm going to put you to work. Clear?"
Harry and Neville groaned into their breakfast.
"I'm sorry, what was that?" Zee asked, her eyes twinkling in laughter.
"Yes, Zee," the four of them mumbled and she grinned.
"That's better. Perhaps tomorrow after you pass your Apparition test you can get your school supplies?" she suggested. "Your Hogwarts letter should have arrived by then. Remus mentioned they went out."
He nodded as he ate, surprised at how much better the food made him feel. Tomorrow he would be seventeen and it felt a little unreal. He would be an adult and Ginny still hated him. The pang of misery he had momentarily been able to forget came back in full swing. He ate mechanically and made plans to go to Clevedon Court and check on Borage as soon as possible.
"I want to go check on Borage today as well," Harry told her. "He should be about ready to add the blood to the potion."
Zee nodded. "Yes. We'll go there together after dinner, but today, you boys are going to help me with some spring cleaning."
"But it's summer," Ron protested.
Zee raised an eyebrow. "Good for you for knowing the seasons, Ron. The house and windows need a good wash and Merlin knows someone needs to take care of the lawn. Mina and Leo have kept me so busy, I haven't had time for anything. The vegetable patch is overrun with weeds and the gazebo and patio could use a good sprucing up."
"I'll take care of your garden and lawn," Neville said. "I could use the tranquility of it."
"I'll wash the house," Harry told her. "Ron can take care of the gazebo and patio."
Theo blinked at them. "I don't know how to do any of those things."
Harry grinned. "You can help me wash the house. I'll show you how to do it."
Zee beamed at them. "Thank you! I appreciate the help. While you boys are handling that, I'm going to get started in here. Mama said that she would watch the twins."
"Where's Kreacher?" Harry asked.
Zee gave him a pointed look. "As much as I adore that mad old elf, this is my home and it's my job to keep it presentable."
Harry made a sound of agreement and thought it was going to be a rather long day.
~ ASC ~
Harry took Theo around the back of the house after they finished up breakfast, showing him how to use the charms to get things ready to wash the windows. Harry was using his unregistered wand to demonstrate the right speed for washing and how to do more than one window at once. Theo found it fascinating and when Harry showed him how to propel a strong jet of water from his wand hard enough to wash the house, he grinned widely.
"This is fun! Look at that dirt just glide right off! It's oddly satisfying. Is this what it feels like to be a house elf? Is this why they love cleaning so much?"
Harry rolled his eyes. "I doubt it. You've never cleaned anything before in your life, have you?"
"Nope," Theo exclaimed gleefully as he moved his wand horizontally down the house. "Harry! Do you think I could spell out my name in all of the dirt?"
"Knock yourself out," Harry sighed. "Just clean it up afterwards, yeah? Don't just leave your name on the side of my house."
"Don't be a plonker," Theo teased. "How about I draw a cock?"
"Don't push it, Theo. Zee will have kittens if she sees that!"
"What will I have kittens about?" Zee asked, stepping out into the side of the garden at that precise moment.
"I was just wondering if I could draw a cock with the water," Theo said. "Harry's being a plonker about it."
Zee chuckled. "Do I want a cock on the side of my house forever? No, but I've always loved cock."
"Is it not enough that you won't let me have a sobering potion? You really have to talk about THAT in front of me?" Harry exclaimed.
"What?" Zee said, feigning innocence. "You once told Sirius that you gave us permission to have sex. He claimed it was lots and lots of sex, even baby-making sex, which is how you ended up with two siblings, you know."
"Harry, from what I've seen, you have nothing to be ashamed about yourself." Theo winked.
Zee raised an eyebrow. "Is there something I should know?"
Harry groaned, rubbing his hand over his face. "No. I hate both of you."
"Here, Zee, you draw Sirius and I'll draw Harry!" Theo suggested. "Then Harry can compare sizes again."
"The person you really want is Tonks," Zee said, trying not to smirk as Harry's face heated.
"Why?" Theo asked.
Zee's eyes twinkled in mischief. "Let's just say your professor is very well endowed."
"Zee!"
"What?" Zee said. "I saw him once after the full moon. She's a very lucky woman. It's no wonder the two of them can't keep their hands off each other. I thought Sirius and I shagged like rabbits, but those two…"
"Voldemort isn't going to be the one to kill me," Harry mumbled. "I'd rather one of you just did it now."
Theo chuckled. "Ah, Harry, always the charmer. You know what, Zee, I like you. I love when someone —"
"—Overshares?" Harry mumbled.
"No," Theo said. "Well, yes, actually, but no I was going to say, I like when people are honest."
Zee's smile widened and she kissed Theo's cheek. "I like you, too."
Theo blushed at that and Harry sighed.
"Now that we've traumatized me for life, can we get back to regular old cleaning? Please."
Zee smiled and winked at Theo. "Absolutely. But loving sex is nothing to be ashamed about. We both know that you and Ginny haven't been fully innocent there."
"Zee!"
She grinned. "Don't deny it, sweetie. Sirius and I did talk about these things — in between the copious amounts of sex we had."
Theo roared in laughter as Harry pointed to Theo's wand.
"Just obliviate me now."
When the two of them only continued to laugh, he turned back to the house to clean. Zee talked to Theo quietly for a moment before she wished them luck and hurried off. Theo came to stand next to him.
"You fluster so easily and it's absolutely adorable. Zee says it was so nice to hear you laugh, she thought the embarrassment was worth it."
He swallowed. He knew how much Zee was worried about him, but he found it hard to be happy when Ginny was… He snuck a look over at Theo. "I still hate you."
Theo's lips curved. "Nah, you really don't."
"Sorry you came for a drink and ended up being assigned chores," Harry told him.
Theo shook his head. "No! I've had a great time. I'm still having a great time. You know, Ginny is the best friend a bloke could ask for and I love her to death, but without Draco and Blaise around it's like… it's like I don't have any blokes to just hang out with."
Harry frowned. "Well, you usually choose to hang out with the girls. I figured you preferred it that way."
"Sometimes," Theo admitted. "But I'm still a man and... I mean, unless you lot are uncomfortable or something."
Harry snorted. "I think my drunken escapades last night proved that's not true."
Theo grinned. "For the record, you're totally fit! And you really do have a big cock, I don't know if it's really bigger than the Dark Lord's, but it's definitely up there in the well-endowed category."
Harry blushed. "Er, thanks. And well, when Voldemort came back at the end of the third task, I had the unfortunate luck of seeing him naked when he was reborn from whatever messed up magic he did to bring himself back. So, yes, I do."
Theo chuckled. "That's what I want to hear! Confident Harry!"
"I am confident," Harry said.
"You are to some extent," Theo agreed. "But you could be more. Like with this whole poster boy thing, it's more than that. It's not you letting the Ministry use you as a status symbol, it's you being confident enough to stand up there and say yes, I am the man who will defeat him."
Harry snuck a look over at him. "What if I can't?"
Theo's lips curved. "That's what you have your friends for. Longbottom, Weasley, Granger, and of course Ginny, they're all there for you."
"You're my friend, too, Theo."
Theo smiled, a slight blush on his cheeks. "And that's really nice to hear, too."
Harry continued to wash the side of the house as he spoke. "And if we're being honest with each other here, the fact that you taught my girlfriend all of those amazing things she does with her mouth and hands is... fuck, I should be doing way more than sending you a fucking fruit basket."
Theo grinned. "Oh definitely, but we'll talk about those details later."
Harry chuckled as Neville shouted something at Ron that they couldn't hear.
"As to Longbottom there, he needs to talk to his woman."
Harry nodded, watching Neville putz in the garden for a moment. "It is strange that she broke up with him. Entwhistle treated her like shit. He was always putting her down in some way and she just took it. For her to break up with Neville because he's nice..."
"Her mother sounds interesting. What do you know about her?" Theo asked.
"Nothing," Harry admitted. "Mandy mentioned that they don't really get along, but that's all I know. I don't run in Hufflepuff circles much."
"Maybe not too many people know," Theo observed. "I mean, Draco and Blaise were the only two people that really knew about my father. I didn't even… Blaise told Finn some things when he asked about my nightmares. It's not something one generally wishes to talk about. Some of the things… I didn't even know they were bad until I was older and realized how brilliant Uncle Lucius and Aunt Narcissa were to Draco."
Harry nodded. "Uncle Sirius had a home life like that. He told me about how his mother used to use the Cruciatus Curse on him as punishment and how he thought that was normal until he found out from my parents that it wasn't."
"Exactly," Theo said. "I think he needs to talk to her and if I was him, I'd also talk to Mandy. That's her best friend, right?"
"Yeah, Mandy Brocklehurst from Ravenclaw."
"Right, that bird you dated back in fourth year."
"Yeah, she's with Goldstein now."
"Why did you two break up again? Oh, right, you were too busy drooling over Ginny like a lovesick fool."
"Piss off," Harry muttered, making Theo laugh so Harry turned his wand away from the house and sprayed Theo right in the chest.
Theo shrieked in shock before he busted into laughter. Ron and Neville came running around the house to see what was going on and Harry and Theo both turned their wands on them at the same time. The two of them were hit with jets of water simultaneously and Ron swore.
"Gits."
Neville laughed and brushed his wet hair out of his face before pulling off his sopping shirt. "That's one way to sober us up."
Harry grinned. "Come on, let's finish up. I bet Zee will make us an incredible lunch if we get all of this done."
Neville squeezed the water out of his shirt. "Sounds good to me."
Ron, who was squeezing water out of his own shirt, merely scowled. "I hate you lot."
"Nah, you don't," Harry said.
At his friend's look, he only grinned wider, and thought it was turning out to be a pretty great day.
~ ASC ~
His friends took off after lunch and Harry spent his afternoon playing with Mina and Leo. They were getting really good at wiggling around and Zee insisted that they would be crawling soon. Harry thought that seemed a little unbelievable, but they had already grown so much. He put them down for naps before dinner and Zee kissed his cheek.
"Thank you for all of your help today. How's your head?"
"It's fine," he admitted. "I feel loads better now."
"It's not that I wanted to punish you," Zee began. "I just think that you should know that drinking has consequences."
"It's not like I plan to get drunk every day," Harry said. "Besides, according to Ron, I did enough stupid things stuff last night."
Zee chuckled. "It sure sounded like you boys were having a good time. I heard laughter and cheering when I went to bed."
"Did we keep you up?"
"Oh, no, sweetie. Not at all. And you do deserve some celebration for your birthday."
Harry followed her downstairs from the nursery and sat on the couch. "I told you, I don't feel like celebrating this year."
Zee made a tutting sound in response that told him she didn't agree with him on that, but decided against saying something on it. "We'll go see how Mr Borage is doing after dinner tonight, but you know the potion is just simmering right now."
Harry did know that. He remembered the Potioneer had told him it would have to simmer for seven days after they added the last ingredient (seven petals from a moon flower picked on the full moon) which had to be soaked in lamb's blood for seven days after the full moon before they could add them to the potion. Borage claimed it was another seven days before they could consider adding Harry and Ginny's blood to the mix. Since the full moon had been over a week ago, the potion had only been simmering for three days.
"I know, but I want to check on it."
She nodded. "And we will. But tomorrow you turn seventeen and I want to do something to acknowledge how proud I am of the man that you've become."
Harry blushed. "Zee… how can I celebrate when she's…"
Zee kissed his cheek again. "Because she would want you to and because you deserve it." At his nod, she smiled. "Now, last year we got that license you wanted and Remus gave you your father's watch."
Harry touched the watch with his fingers. It still brought a smile to his face whenever he looked down at it. "I don't need anything."
"Well, there's something that I'd like to do actually, and I would love it if you came with me."
Harry raised an eyebrow as he looked over at her. "What's that?"
"I loved that Sirius had your name tattooed over his heart," she said. "It said so much about him to have that tattoo especially because he got it before he knew he would be raising you himself. I want to get my children's names tattooed over my heart."
"You do?"
Zee nodded. "I do. Nothing too big, but I've been working on the design I want. I do already have the elephant here on my ribs and of course my little niffler on my neck and the dragon down by spine."
"And that wicked sleeve on your calf," Harry said, his eyes moving down to where the flowers and panther tattoo was revealed with her shorts on.
"That was mostly to hide my scar, but it is pretty fantastic, isn't it?" she said with a grin, turning to her leg out to admire it. "But, I think I'm going to get it here over my heart and it's going to be a heart."
"I thought you wanted names?"
Zee smiled, reaching for the novel she was reading. She tugged out a piece of parchment to show him. It was two lopsided lines forming a messy heart. On the right side above the heart shape was his own name in cursive, Harry James Potter, next to a small heart with the word family in it written into the heart. Beneath his name, following the outline of the heart was Leonardo Sirius Mikhail Black. Inside the heart, flowing out from Leo's name it said Minerva Euphemia Magnolia Black with the same small heart and the word family again. The centre of the heart was a large fancy S as it said Sirius Orion Black with his birth and death flowing along the edge of the heart above Leo's name. In the top right corner of the heart were three pink dogwood flowers, the only colour to the otherwise black tattoo.
"What do you think?" she asked.
Harry swallowed the sudden lump that appeared in his throat. "You want my name on there, too?"
"Of course," she said. "It's my family, my children, and… for Sirius. I think it's perfect."
"Me too," he admitted.
"And I know that it's nothing special, but I would like for you to come with me tomorrow to get it done."
"You want me to come?"
"Yes," she said. "And then we'll go somewhere in Muggle London and have lunch, just the two of us, what do you think?"
Harry was staring at the tattoo she'd sketched on the parchment intently and he found himself nodding. "Yes, but there is something I want to do tomorrow."
"Anything, sweetie," Zee told him.
"I want to get a tattoo."
Zee laughed in surprise. "You — really?"
He nodded. "Yes."
"Harry, just because I'm going to get one tomorrow doesn't mean you have to get a tattoo as well."
"It's not," Harry told her. "It's something that I've been thinking about for a while and as you know… it's time. I know what I want."
Zee squeezed his hand in hers, a soft smile on her face as she reached over to brush his hair out of his eyes. "Then go for it."
And Harry thought it sounded like the best idea he'd had in a while. He just needed to talk to Dean first.
~ ASC ~
Remus woke suddenly. He laid there a moment, listening for any sound, but all he could hear was his wife's steady breathing and the thump of her heart. Not sure what had woken him, he stared up at the ceiling, thinking about what had happened over the last little bit. Tomorrow, Harry would be seventeen. Dora was taking him, Ron, and Neville to the Ministry to write their Apparition test. Harry didn't want to do anything else. In fact, he insisted on it.
Remus understood that. Borage was still working on the antidote at Clevedon Court and he said it was coming along very well. Fleamont agreed and every time Remus stopped by to check in, the sound of Borage bickering with the portrait filled the house. Borage's wife Lara had arrived a few days after her husband. He seemed much happier now that she was there and Euphemia seemed pleased. The wives being present tended to lower the bickering of their stubborn Potioneers. A little.
He had gone over last night with Harry, Zee, Mina, and Leo where Borage had walked them through the process. He told them how pleased he was with how it was simmering. He said four more days and they would need to add some of Ginny's blood to the cauldron. Harry had been anxious at the thought, but it was coming along.
He told Remus that he and Zee were spending the afternoon together after he took his Apparition test and Remus was pleased for him. The little pang of jealousy that his son wasn't planning to spend his seventeenth birthday with him had only lasted a moment. Harry was officially a man tomorrow and he'd never been more proud of anything. Then Harry asked if he could come over after and spend the evening with him and Remus had felt himself beaming.
He knew why Harry didn't really want to celebrate his birthday. He insisted that he would celebrate his birthday only once Ginny had been given the antidote. But he was glad his son was still willing to have a mini celebration, even if it only meant having a drink with his father. Remus was proud to celebrate with him.
Fleamont and Borage had both warned him that the antidote would need time to settle in; that Ginny might need time to recuperate what she lost. Harry didn't care. He insisted that he didn't need to celebrate his birthday. He just needed Ginny to not hate him anymore.
The pain in Harry's eyes pulled at Remus and he wished that he could do something to help with it. He wished not for the first time that Sirius was still around to help Harry out of his hole. Sometimes he felt that no matter what he did, it wasn't enough. And tomorrow, tomorrow Harry would be an adult. He didn't know where the time had gone.
Tonks had returned to work with a gusto. Her three day weekend had given her a renewed sense of energy and she poured herself into her work under Kane. Remus knew that she couldn't talk about too many of the details, but he did know that whatever it was that Kane was having them do, seemed to be working. Tonks had even spent some time doing personal interviews with the three young Slytherins who her parents were caring for.
Shanae Pritchard was due in September with her baby and her husband, Graham, just as much of a child as the wife who was carrying his, hadn't left her side. The two of them seemed to have bonded together in friendship and Remus thought it had really helped the two of them survive. Malcolm Baddock was doing all right himself, but he was very jumpy and he refused to be left alone in the same room with any woman older than himself. Andromeda and Ted suspected he'd been abused more than Graham and Shanae, but he wasn't talking about it. The only thing they knew was that he had been married to Alecto Carrow and since they knew what her reputation entailed, they weren't making him talk more than he was willing.
No one had heard any word from Snape about them either. All they knew was that they had escaped because Snape had helped them. Tonks was working on gleaning any bit of information from them on Voldemort and his followers as she could. They were three scared kids and that made it a bit harder. Andromeda was doing research to find them a good Mind Healer; someone they could trust to keep it all a secret as things unravelled. Not to mention they needed to find a place for them to stay.
Ted and Andromeda didn't mind having them in Shoreditch. They loved the company, but they were worried once the baby came, they wouldn't have much room. And if Snape were to send them anyone else, the little three bedroom home was going to be quite crowded. But those were thoughts for another day.
Remus listened intently again, but the house was quiet. He climbed out of bed slowly and made his way to the toilet and when he returned a few moments later, Tonks had pulled all of the blankets up and cocooned herself so much that he could only see a tuff of pink hair out of the top of the blankets. He smiled at the sight of it. They tended to keep the cooling charm rather chilly at night in the summer, but maybe it was a tad too cold for his wife.
He carefully unwrapped her and watched in amazement as gooseflesh pimpled over her skin. Her arms stretched up over her head in protest to the lack of warmth and his eyes fell on those hard pink nipples before he crawled back into bed with her. The moment his hand touched her, she turned towards him in sleep, towards his warmth.
Remus pulled the blankets up with him, but he curled back into his wife, resting his head over her chest as he did, letting his tongue brush a hard nipple. Her fingers brushed his hair, but her breathing never changed and he smiled. He glanced at the clock and saw that they'd only been asleep a little less than three hours. He made to nuzzle her breasts, wondering if he should wake her with his voice or his lips when the smell of moss and something musky made him raise his head.
He sniffed the air, unsure where it was coming from, but the house smelt normal. He could smell the sex in the air from their coming together earlier and the apple crisp he had made. He could smell the pork chops from dinner, but this new smell wasn't coming from the house.
He lowered his face back to his wife, his tongue brushing her nipple again. Kissing was definitely the way to go, he thought. He planted small kisses over her nipples, letting his lips slip lower over her stomach, his tongue dipping into her belly button before he kissed the faded light pink scars there. His lips moved lower, kissing the coarse purple hair and when his lips touched the top of her, she sighed in her sleep. He pressed his lips to the top of her again before he spread her legs before him and buried his nose between those thighs.
She smelt delicious. He always thought she smelt delicious. His wife. His mate. Her scent rose over him with a mix of his own, reminding him of what they had done earlier. He loved smelling himself on her almost as much as he loved smelling her. He buried his nose deeper, the tip of it touching her pubic hair as he placed one soft kiss over the hidden bud and he smelt it again.
Moss. Pine needles. Forest. Musk. Wolf.
He lifted his head to look up at his wife.
Nymphadora had a soft smile on her face, but was still sleeping, one hand curled under her chin, the other resting on her stomach where it had fell from his hair when he lifted his head. He smelt it again when he lowered his head back between her legs, the smell was still there and he felt anger surge through him. He knew that she hadn't been with another man, but he could smell a wolf here. Not a wolf… he thought, sniffing again, but something familiar, yet new…
He stuck his tongue out tentatively, licking her, and she let out a sleepy squeak. Remus looked up at her again and suddenly he knew. It was too soon for him to hear it, he knew that, and too soon for his wife to know, to feel anything. But he knew it.
They'd created new life.
Remus rested his head over her stomach, his cheek lying there as he contemplated that. He was going to be a father and the fear that he usually felt at the thought wasn't there. He'd been a father to Harry for years and he knew that he could do this, but it was the wolf part that worried him. The chances were so slim, almost non-existent that he would pass his lycanthropy down to his child. But the possibility of them having wolf-like symptoms was a big one. Would Nymphadora really be ready for that?
He looked at her sleeping form again and smiled. She was the best thing to ever happen to him and he knew that living without her would be the worst punishment anyone could give him, worse than his transformations, worse than being in Azkaban had been. She was his world.
He lowered his head to nuzzle her sex again and this time he didn't hesitate, his tongue slipping through her folds for a long sensuous lick that made her groan.
"Dora," he murmured, kissing her thigh.
"Mmm," she moaned as he licked her again.
"I'm going to make you come for me."
The smell of her instant arousal made him hard as his tongue slid between her folds, licking and stroking.
"Remus," she murmured as his lips wrapped around her bud and he sucked it into his mouth.
The sound of approval she let out made him smile and as he used his tongue leisurely, torturing and teasing her until she fell apart under his tongue as he thought about the fact that she was carrying his child. When she stopped quaking under him, he slid up to bury his face in her breasts, holding her close. Her hands stroked his hair lovingly and the tears in his eyes only made him snuggle closer.
He couldn't wait for her to find out.
End Author's Notes:
Thanks to Tim for help with my French (it's a bit rusty).
Thanks for reading and please review!