Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

"Everybody wants confession; everybody wants some cathartic narrative for it, the guilty especially- but everybody's guilty."

April 20th, 2003

Daphne was enjoying breakfast that morning when the surly little house-elf of Harry's popped in and dropped off a note. He didn't wait around long enough for a reply, but she didn't notice that because she was already starting to worry as she read.

"Darling, what's the matter?" her mum asked.

"It's Harry; he's at St. Mungo's."

"Oh no!' Evelyn replied. "Is it serious? Is he hurt?"

"He says he's okay, but he's been stuck there all night because of a case," Daphne said as she kept reading. "It looks like our evening's going to have to be canceled he says. Like that's what I'm really worrying about right now."

Astoria snorted. "I'm sure a part of you is disappointed. You've been talking about your next date all week."

"You'll have to excuse me for having a man worth getting excited over," Daphne snapped back at her sister.

If their father chuckled slightly at the end of the table, he did his best to hide it behind the newspaper.

"Girls, let's not do that right now," Evelyn cut in.

"I'm finished anyway," Astoria said as she got up and left.

"Sorry, mum." Daphne fretted as she finished scanning through Harry's message again. "Should I go see him? Would that be too presumptuous? Or... would I be too clingy if I did something like that? He is working after all, overtime I suppose, but still. I'm just not sure if-"

"Sweetheart," her mum interjected with a soft smile. "Go see him. I'm sure Harry will be pleased to know you care, even if he is busy, and it will make you feel better too."

"Thanks, mum."

As Daphne left the table, Evelyn added, "I'll come help you fix your hair before you go."

Cyrus Greengrass chuckled again as his eldest daughter fled while blushing. "I'm surprised at how much you're encouraging her. You've never been that way with Astoria."

"Our daughters are very different people, if you haven't noticed," Evelyn snarked back.

"Yes, dear," Cyrus grinned.

"Besides, if you haven't been paying attention, this is the happiest Daphne has been in years," Evelyn added. "Maybe since she was a little girl. That makes Harry Potter golden in my book, until he proves otherwise."

"I'm sure the luster will wear off one of these days."

"Let's just hope there's still some substance underneath it." Evelyn sighed. "It's probably too much to hope for, but I'll keep my fingers crossed for her sake."

Harry was sitting outside the room that the three kidnapping victims were staying in. The young woman and her baby were sleeping when he had looked in on them a few minutes prior. Ron had just returned from the cafeteria with a snack for the little boy.

He knew he wasn't always the most supportive or friendly with his partner, but Harry was rather impressed with how well Ron was handling the boy. Maybe it came from being a part of such a huge family, something Harry could not relate to.

"Harry?"

He turned and saw her there, his girlfriend looking radiant and well rested, probably a massive contrast to himself. The huge smile on his face couldn't be helped- she was a breath of sunshine after the night he'd had. "Hey gorgeous."

Pulling her into a kiss felt like the most normal thing in the world, and that was something he desperately needed at the moment.

Daphne leaned back with a coy little blush. "Aren't you working? I wouldn't want you to get in trouble."

"It's been one hell of a night, so I think I'm due a little leeway."

"What happened?" she asked. "I mean, what can you tell me? I know this is part of a case or an ongoing investigation or..."

"It's going to come out soon," he shook his head as he sat down, Daphne immediately taking the chair next to him. "Maybe even today; I wouldn't put it past the Daily Prophet to have something this scandalous on the front page as fast as they can. But, some of it..."

Harry sighed and scrubbed at his face. "Some of it, you don't want to know. Hell, some of it, I don't want to know."

"Are you alright?"

"I will be," he answered. "Hell, it's probably a good thing I didn't get any sleep; likely would've had nightmares anyway."

Daphne didn't know what to say to that so she merely took his hand in hers.

"From talking to Ron, I guess you probably knew Theodore Nott?"

She hissed at the name and involuntarily squeezed his hand. "Yes, he was in my class. He always creeped me out."

"You had good instincts then," Harry said. "He was a monster."

"Was?" she asked.

"He's dead now."

"Oh." She seemed unsure how to respond to that. "Did... he didn't hurt you, did he?"

"No, I'm fine," he chuckled softly. "Physically, I'm just tired. But we're going to have a lot of work to do over the next few days. Nott was a murderer and a rapist, and probably other things as well. We may never know all of his crimes. That's the worst part about not being able to bring him in alive. But after what I saw... I'm glad he's dead. The sick fuck definitely deserved it."

He noticed she had paled a bit and tried to lighten the mood. "Pardon my French."

Daphne rolled her eyes. "I actually speak French. As for your harsh language, I'll put it down to stress."

"It's a dirty job, but someone's got to do it." He closed his eyes and rolled his neck back and forth, producing a couple of nice pops. "We all have to do something to try to relax. Better to curse than actually start throwing curses around, don't you think?"

"I suppose it is."

Hermione Granger chose that moment to arrive. "Harry? What are you doing here?"

"Working," he shrugged. "Same as you, I guess."

"Yes, the occasional weekend shift is something I have to deal with," she answered. "But, what-"
Ron chose that moment to come out of the room the patients were resting in. "The little guy finally dozed off." His face fell as he saw his ex. "Oh. Erm, hi?"

"What little guy?" Hermione asked.

"If you're not cleared for this particular case, you might want to stay out of it," Harry suggested.

"This is where I'm assigned today," she replied as she took the chart off the wall next to the door, beginning to read. "Oh my god..."

"Yeah, it's not pretty," Harry said.

"Granger, I'm glad I caught you," an older healer said as she came down the hall. "This is a very delicate situation, so I need to make sure you're ready for it."

"Yes, madam," Hermione responded. "I'm glad you found me. Should we take this to an office?"

"Good idea." The senior healer turned to Harry. "Any change since I was here half an hour ago?"

"All three were sleeping as of a few minutes ago."

"Alright. We'll be back in a moment."

As their steps echoed down the hall, Ron piped up. "I don't know what I should say to her."

"Just try to be professional," Harry offered. "This isn't the time or place for anything else. I think Hermione can manage that if you can."

"I hope you're right."

Both healers returned a few minutes later and went inside to check on the patients.

"I should probably go," Daphne said as she squeezed Harry's hand. "I don't want to interfere; I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I appreciate it."

"I can stay here if you want to walk her out," Ron suggested.

"Thanks," Harry said.

"Let me know if there's anything I can do to help," Daphne said as she and Harry went down the stairs.

"There is, actually," he said. "Do you know a good lawyer?"

"I could get in touch with my family's solicitor," she replied. "Why? What do you need him for?"

"I want to make sure that whatever Nott's got in his vault goes to the victims," Harry stated. "He's the father of both children, and the girl- she deserves something after everything he put her through. I really don't want to see her status as a squib mean she gets screwed over even worse."

"My dad always said Sam's good at his job. I've never personally had to use his services, but my parents trust him. Plus, I'm pretty sure he's worked with the ministry before on criminal cases."

"Give him my name, if you could. It will probably be tomorrow before I can talk to him about the case, but I'll make time."

They had reached the floos and Daphne gave him a hug. "You're a good man, Harry."

He sighed.

A woman with pink hair stepped out of the green flames only a few feet away. "There's my favorite distant cousin."

"Hey Tonks." At her raised eyebrows, he added. "Right, this is Daphne Greengrass. Daphne, this is Tonks. Fellow auror, distant cousin, and all around troublemaker."

Tonks snorted. "You're one to talk, Harry."

He shrugged.

"I was just leaving," Daphne said. She gave him a brief kiss. "Contact me later on the mirror when you get a chance, and try to get some rest."

"Thanks for coming by," he replied just before she left through the floo.

"She seemed nice," Tonks said. "Cute too."

"Yeah."

"Neither of you said anything about love though," Tonk teased.

"We've only been seeing each other for a couple of months," he shrugged.

"Taking it slow, huh?" Tonks laughed. "Weren't you raised by Sirius? He'd be taking the piss out of you."

"Yeah, well maybe-"

Tonks interrupted and put her hand on his shoulder. "Maybe it's been more than a year, Harry. It's okay for you to move on."

"Leave it," he hissed.

"I'm just saying-"

"Don't."

"Fine," she huffed. "I'm here about work, anyway. The boss is going to have a big press conference about this, probably in the morning. Your presence has been requested by some of the higher ups."

"I bet Amelia isn't happy about that," Harry snorted.

"There's a reason why I've never slept with a coworker," Tonks teased. "But the boss knows that in the big picture, something like this with your name attached to it is going to bring in the headlines. She wants to get out in front of it. Besides, cheer up. You might get promoted back up out of the basement."

"At the moment I'm too tired to get excited by that," he said with a yawn.

"Come on upstairs with me then," Tonks added as she pulled him along. "We've got Robards coming in to help relieve you and Weasley in an hour, once he's been debriefed on everything. I'll probably be staying here too for a little while. I got some coffee in me, so I'm good for a few more hours."

"You might be able to cheer them up some," Harry suggested. "Well, the boy at least. The young woman is going to need a lot of help. Maybe even some work done on her memory. I wouldn't blame her if she asked to be obliviated of the last two years."

"As bad as what I saw was, I wouldn't blame her either," Tonks replied somberly. "You sure did pick one hell of a mess to find."

Ron was still sitting there in the hall when Hermione came out.

"Can we talk?" she said.

"Erm, yeah."

"This is a mess," Hermione said.

"Do you mean us or the case?"

"Can't it be both?"

Ron looked away. "Don't take this wrong, but this last night I haven't been thinking about you."

"I can understand that," Hermione replied. "It sounds like it was really bad."

"You have no idea," Ron exhaled. "You really, really don't want to know."

"I'm sorry," Hermione said. She waited a moment. "So, now what do we do?"

"What do you mean?" Ron asked with a frown. "I thought you made it pretty clear where we stood."

"I don't know, after seeing you today, and this case and everything..." Hermione threw up her hands. "I still love you, you know?"

"I still love you too," he said. "But maybe that isn't enough."

"It would've been if you hadn't-"

"No, I don't think it would," Ron shook his head. "I don't think we really wanted the same things for the future. And that isn't either of our faults, it's just..."

He trailed off and sighed. "I'm sorry I hurt you."

Hermione looked away and wiped at her face as the door opened. The little boy was looking at them.

"Mister Ron? Can you read me a story? Like the one last night?"

"Sure thing, kiddo."

He got up and went back into the room.

Hermione chuckled sadly. "He picks now of all the times to grow up and..." She took a deep breath and exhaled. "But maybe he was right, that it just isn't enough."

Harry and Ron were finally off duty shortly before lunch.

"Back to the meet up spot before we go home," Harry said with a raised eyebrow.

Ron nodded. "Yeah, sure."

Two cracks later and they were standing under a tree near where their original victim was found.

"Why did you cover for me?" Ron asked.

"You've never killed someone before," Harry answered.

"Have you?"

"Yeah." Harry ran his hand through his hair. "And no offense, but I think I'll handle questioning better than you. Plus, my name will probably help if anyone tries to raise a stink about not bringing that sack of shit in alive."

"Thanks," Ron said. "For that, and for reminding me about clearing my wand. I wouldn't have thought of that, not in the moment at least."

"What are partners for?" Harry shrugged. "I just wish I'd had the chance to ask him some more questions."

"Why? He was guilty."

"He was guilty of some awful shit, yeah," Harry agreed. "But I don't know for certain if he was guilty of the murder we're actually trying to solve. I never got an answer about that."

"Oh," Ron flushed in embarrassment. "Sorry I mucked that up."

"It's alright."

Ron yawned. "I'm gonna try to catch a couple of hours and head back to the hospital. I think it'd be best if one of us was there for them as much as we can be."

"That's not a bad idea," Harry nodded. "I was thinking of contacting her father, but I'm going to get some sleep first. I think I'll need to be at my best to make sure he doesn't freak out about what's happened."

"Good thinking," Ron said. "I'll see you later."

"Rest up while you can," Harry added. "There's still going to be a lot more work to do from here on. Reports and who knows what."

"My worst enemy- paperwork!" Ron laughed.

"You and me both."

"Hey, Harry?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks again," Ron said. "For last night and everything."

April 21st, 2003

"We are withholding the names of the victims for the time being," Amelia Bones answered yet another reporter's question as Harry stood by behind her. Ron was trying not to fidget nervously next to him as she continued. "For obvious reasons, we will not be going into details until our investigation is finalized."

"Is it true this was the work of a serial offender? Was he suspected in any other recent crimes?"

"That is still to be determined."

"Is Mister Potter available to answer any questions?" asked a witch in the front row. She had been rather obvious as she'd been staring at him throughout the entire press conference. Amelia glowered at her but turned a moment later and waved him over. "Mister Potter, how does it feel to be back home?"

"Home is a relative term," he replied. "For most of my life, that's been a variety of places as my godfather and I moved around a lot."

"But are you back to stay?" she pressed on.

"I never studied Divination, so I can't tell the future," he shrugged as more people laughed than the line deserved. But he expected that. "However, I do plan on living here unless circumstances change."

Several people clapped and cheered at his statement.

"Is there anything you can tell us about the case?"

"As Madam Bones already said, the investigation is ongoing, so you'll have to forgive me."

A different man piped up, "Mister Potter, was it necessary to kill Mister Nott? Couldn't you have arrested him?"

"When spells start flying and your life is in danger, sometimes it isn't possible to bring a target in peacefully," Harry answered.

"Was it you or your partner who killed Mister Nott?"

"I did," Harry said. "Ron's a good partner and he had my back in the middle of all the chaos, but I was the one who killed Nott."

There was plenty of muttering that followed.

"Mister Potter, Romilda Vane of Teen Witch Weekly," a younger woman waved at him with a smile. "Is it true that you're dating Daphne Greengrass?"

"I don't believe my personal life has anything to do with the case," Harry replied while forcing himself not to roll his eyes. He definitely should have expected that.

"Are you still single then?" she added. "Maybe we could do a more intimate interview later."

"No thank you, Miss Vane."

Amelia stepped over to the podium and Harry was happy to cede the spotlight back to her. "If there are no further pertinent questions, my aurors and I need to get back to work. Thank you."

They pushed through the throng of reporters a minute later and headed for the elevators.

"Good work, you two," Amelia said. "Finish up whatever you need to today and then take the afternoon off. You both could likely use some rest after how busy you were this weekend."

"Thanks, boss," Ron smiled wearily. "I could probably use a nap. I haven't been able to sleep well after everything..."

"I understand," she replied. "I worked a few Death Eater cases back in the Seventies that gave me nightmares too."

Harry took the pause as his chance to interrupt. "Did Tonks mention the potential leak?"

"I've already started looking into it," she nodded. "You focus on killers, and I'll deal with any traitors. Got it, Potter?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Good." A bell dinged. "This is my lift. Coordinate with Tonks if you need any help, and don't forget that you've each got a guard duty scheduled for tomorrow."

They agreed as the door closed behind her and Ron pushed a button for the next elevator- or lift, as Harry reminded himself. He was probably going to have to get used to the different lingo for things like that if he really was going to stay for years to come.

Either that or just stubbornly stick out as a foreigner. A part of him liked being contrary, so he was still considering it.

"How was the father?" Ron asked once they were alone.

"Angry about what had happened but glad that she was still alive," Harry leaned back against the rear wall as they started descending and closed his eyes. "I got him to calm down before I let him inside to see her. It was obviously tough on him to find out he had a granddaughter- especially with how she came to be. But I think they're going to be okay. At least, I hope so."

"What about the girl's mum?"

"Apparently the parents have separated since their daughter disappeared," Harry sighed. "He was going to contact her after his visit. I'm hoping she won't be a problem, but I got the impression that she's one of those awful snobby types who looks down on squibs."

"Even her own daughter?" Ron looked disgusted. "Bloody hell. What is wrong with people?"

"You were good with the little boy," Harry looked over at his partner.

"Yeah, well I..." Ron huffed and shook his head. "Maybe I've got a better appreciation for some things after what we saw that night. And kids, they shouldn't have to deal with anything like that. Ever."

"Amen to that," Harry nodded.

"Are you going to need any help today?" Ron asked.

"No. Feel free to cut out whenever."

"Good. I was thinking of hitting St. Mungo's. Make sure everyone is okay. I kind of feel responsible, you know?"

"Yeah."

"Plus, I was hoping to get a couple of Dreamless Sleep potions," Ron admitted.

"Be careful with those things," Harry said. "If you take them too often they lose their effectiveness, and you end up sleeping like shit anyway. Trust me, I speak from experience."

"A couple of nights can't hurt," Ron shrugged.

"Just make sure you're not still pounding them down next week or the week after," Harry added.

"Alright. I'm gonna grab my jacket from the office and take off then."

The bell jingled and Daphne felt like screaming. With the lull she was just about to take a late lunch, and now someone was about to make her even hungrier.

Then Harry came out from in between the shelves and she couldn't stop smiling.

"Hey gorgeous," he said as he walked over to the counter.

"I was just about to eat. Want to join me?"

"I'd love to," he yawned.

"I think you need some time off," she grinned.

"The boss gave us the afternoon off. I wanted to stop by here before heading home as I'll probably try to catch up on some sleep. Oh, and to warn you."

"Warn me about what?"

"Madam Bones held a press conference this morning, and as you might guess, they wanted to ask questions of me," Harry sighed. "There was this younger woman from Teen Witch Weekly who was particularly brazen, asking about my personal life. She mentioned your name, so I figured that I should give you a heads up."

"Oh," Daphne frowned. "I suppose I should expect some of that sort of thing. You are still famous even if it doesn't always feel like it."

"I try to keep a low profile," he shrugged. "It helps with work, for one thing."

"I'd imagine so." Her stomach rumbled and she blushed briefly as Harry laughed. "Alright, let's go somewhere to eat."

April 23rd, 2003

The man had run when he felt someone following him, but he wasn't quick enough, and a spell knocked him off his feet.

Mundungus Fletcher kept his eyes closed as Harry hauled him down an alley and into an empty shop.

"Don't bother faking with me, Dung."

"What's the big idea then, Potter?" the thief asked as he looked up from where he'd been tossed.

"Sirius warned me that sometimes you would need to be properly motivated to do the right thing," Harry answered with a nasty grin. "How much motivation am I going to need to give you?"

"Just tell me what you want," Fletcher replied, throwing his hands up in defeat. "We've worked together before alright, haven't we?"

"Let me warn you that I'm dead serious this time."

"Then, what do you need?"

"I'm going to bring a colleague around to take a brief statement from you," Harry answered. "We'll meet somewhere private, so don't worry about that. Your testimony will be helpful, got it?"

"Sure, sure," Dung grinned. "What type of testimony are we talking about here?"

"You saw a girl just before she disappeared a couple of years ago," Harry said. "A girl that was talking to Theodore Nott."

"Isn't he the one that-"

"The one in the papers, yes."

"Right, got it," Dung nodded and then let out a sigh. "I guess I do still owe you one for last time."

"We'll call it even if you do this right," Harry replied, stepping closer. "But don't fuck me over."

"I wouldn't do that, now would I?"

Harry picked him up by the collar and leaned over the smaller man. "I've already killed one man this week, Dung. You don't want me to have to make it two."

"No," the thief gulped. "We won't be having any problems, Harry."

"I thought not," Harry smirked.

April 25th, 2003

"Hey, you're back late from lunch for once," Ron teased as Harry came in and sat down across from him.

"The meeting with the lawyer ran a bit long."

"Lawyer?"

"For our victims," Harry explained. "I was wanting to make sure that whatever Nott had saved up goes to them- especially since the scumbag is the father of the two kids. Daphne recommended a guy that her family has used before."

"Oh, good thinking." Ron scratched his head. "What's this bloke's name?"

"Sam McKenzie."

"I've heard of him; he did some work for one of my dad's old friends once."

"I liked him more than most lawyers I've met," Harry snorted. "But that's not saying much. He was reasonable about his prices though- refused to take more than the standard Ministry fees for victims of crimes, so that was a good sign."

Ron nodded. "Yeah, that does sound good."

Harry opened his briefcase and began putting his files away.

"Hey, um," Ron interrupted him. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Well, you know I had a thing with Lavender, and..." he trailed off. "She wants to start dating again. I mean, like us giving it another serious shot. Do you think I should?"

"Hmm," Harry muttered as he closed his eyes for a moment. "Was this abrupt?"

"I don't think so," Ron sighed. "She'd been giving me some signals even before I slept with her. I've just never been that great with relationships. Not that I've had that many of them either."

"So, why ask me?"

"Well, you did manage to score with Susan," Ron laughed. "You and Greengrass seem to be doing well together. And... I may have peeked in your file."

"Oh." Harry glared at his partner. "Why did you do that?"

"I wanted to know how you could stay so calm about everything that happened," Ron answered. "You'd said that you had to kill before, and that got me curious, but then I saw about-"

Harry interrupted him. "That's why I came here. I needed a fresh start after everything."

"I get it," Ron said. "But it still proves that you know more about women than I do. So, what do you think I should do about Lavender?"

"Since I've never met her, I can't be too sure of any advice."

"It couldn't hurt to get some though," Ron insisted.

"I think you should really think about it before you start back up with her," Harry replied. "For one thing, you don't want this to be just another rebound, right?"

"Right."

"You should talk to her," Harry suggested. "Make sure that the two of you are on the same wavelength about what you want. Maybe take things slow."

"Yeah, that sounds good," Ron agreed. "We're having dinner tomorrow night."

"Ah. Well, good luck."

"Thanks." Ron looked at him a little funny. "I'm kinda surprised you aren't giving me grief about all this."

"Why?"

"You are friends with Hermione," Ron shrugged. "I figured you might take her side and, you know, call me a bastard or something."

"She called me the other night," Harry replied. "I think she's going to be okay in the long run. And she said something about how the two of you probably did want different things for the future. Like a family."

"Yeah," Ron laughed. "I am a Weasley after all."

"Hermione's more interested in other things right now," Harry added. "I just hope she doesn't throw herself into her career so much that she loses track of everything else."

"That does sound like her," Ron sighed. "I'm glad you're her friend, Harry. She could probably use one right now."

Daphne hurried to her room. Her gran had come in to handle closing the store so she could leave early. After everything that had happened recently, she wasn't willing to wait any longer than absolutely necessary to see Harry.

She knew she was probably being foolish, but she just couldn't help herself.

Flinging open the door, she came skidding to a halt.

"Mum, what are you doing here?"

"Your grandmother gave me a warning," Evelyn replied with a fond smile. "That you were all in a strop about needing to see your beau, so much that you left the store early."

"Yes, well..."

"I am so happy for you, sweetheart." Her mum pulled her into a hug and sniffled slightly. "I can't tell you how much I've worried about how closed off you've been for so long."

"Mum," Daphne whined.

"Alright, I'll stop," Evelyn laughed. "Now then, what is the plan for this evening? What sort of look are we going for?"

Daphne blushed. This would have been easier if she had someone like Tracey to help. She finally forced herself to speak. "Something sexy."

"Oh my, planning on having some fun then?"

Her mother's teasing just made her more embarrassed. She decided to try to fight fire with fire. "I was planning on staying the night with him, actually."

The beaming smile on her mother's face was not the response she was hoping for. "Is this going to be a surprise for Harry?"

"Yes," she admitted. "I mean, we were planning on a meal together, but not... the other part."

"Has he pressured you about that?" Evelyn asked, her tone much more calm. "I'm sure some young men would be less patient than others."

"No, everything's been great," Daphne grinned. "I think I'm ready for more."

"Well, good."

"Good? You're not going to tell me to wait until... I don't know, my wedding night or something?"

"Oh, pish," her mum snorted. "Your father and I certainly didn't wait like that."

"I did not need to know that," Daphne groaned.

Evelyn patted her on the arm patronizingly and let out a giggle. "Then maybe we should talk more about you and Harry, hmm?"

Daphne threw herself back onto her bed.

"Don't sulk, sweetheart," her mum said. "Let's find something that will knock Harry's socks off."

Harry was a little late finishing up his work day when he left his office. The lifts- and he congratulated himself on remembering not to call it an elevator- were pretty full as people were talking about plans for the weekend. He got a few starstruck looks, more than he had previously due to the notoriety of the Nott case no doubt, but no one bothered him.

Other than seeing Daphne, Harry was hoping he'd have a good chance to get some work done on a special project.

Once upon a time, he might have been a more social and outgoing person.

There was a middle aged woman waiting for him in the atrium, an angry woman with blonde hair who spotted him in the crowd. Harry hadn't seen her coming until it was too late.

The crack of the slap got his attention though.

"You murderer!" she screamed at him. "You killed my boy!"

A couple of people in the crowd had pulled her back when she tried to continue her attack.

Harry felt his cheek and frowned. "Mrs. Nott, I presume?"

"You bastard, Potter, I'll-"

"That's enough." His favorite metamorph interrupted the commotion and stepped between them, wand at the ready. "You'll be spending the weekend in a holding cell if you don't go home, madam. Assaulting an auror, especially this one, is something we take very seriously. Do I make myself clear?"

Mrs. Nott fumed but finally relented.

"Go on then," Tonks added. Once the older woman had left, Tonks turned around and cocked an eyebrow at him. "Looks like she got you pretty good there, Harry."

"On a scale of one to ten, I'd give it a solid six," he replied.

Tonks laughed. "You've had worse then?"

"First grade," he chuckled. "This girl caught me looking up her skirt out on the playground. That was probably an eight. I lost one of my teeth a couple of days later."

"So you deserved it," she teased.

"Yeah, but Sirius was proud of me. He said I needed work on how to check out girls without doing something so blatant."

Tonks snorted. "I'll bet he did."

"Thanks for breaking things up though," Harry added. "It probably wouldn't have been for the best if I ended up having to arrest a grieving mother, even if her son was a psychopath."

"We aurors have to stick together," she shrugged. "There's enough danger and stress without letting upset civilians start causing even more problems."

"Fair enough."

"Go on and get out of here," Tonks grinned. "Didn't you tell me you were seeing your girl tonight? You don't want to be late."

Seconds after he had returned through the floo, Harry heard the flames of the fireplace roar behind him.

Then she was standing there, looking more radiant than ever in an emerald green dress with spaghetti straps with a hemline that stopped a few inches above her knees.

"Harry."

Daphne said nothing other than his name before immediately drawing him into a kiss.

"You look stunning," he breathed out a moment later. "And your hair... what's the big occasion?"

She reached up and pulled a strand of her now blonde locks in front of her face, as if reminding herself of the change. "I wanted you to see the real me. I know I've dispelled the glamours and things I use at work before, but you make me feel..."

Harry watched her expression change as she struggled to find the right word.

"I don't know exactly," Daphne shrugged. "Happy. Safe. Relaxed. All of those things and more."

"I guess I'm doing something right then," he replied and she hugged him. Harry closed his eyes and tried not to think.

"I know I'm a bit early," she whispered in his ear. "But after what happened last weekend, I realized how much I want to be with you. Now, come on."

She took his hand towards, pulling him out of the room and towards the stairs.

"Where are we going?" he asked.

It took her a moment to reply, and by that time they were already walking down the hall. "Your bedroom."

Harry was a little surprised by it, and a little worried too. He had specifically not tried to rush anything with her as far as the physical side of things had gone. "Are you sure?"

She turned the doorknob and threw him the sexiest look over her shoulder. "Yes."

He found himself unable to say anything else as they were quickly lost in an embrace, her lips soft and needy, her hands grasping and almost frantic.

They tumbled onto the bed together and his hand slid up her thigh.

Daphne moaned and their kiss ended. "After last weekend, I don't want to wait anymore. I love you."

Harry, in one of his most noble and also moronic moves ever, pulled back, his eyes wide and his heart pounding.

Why did she have to say that?

"What's wrong?" she asked, confusion etched across her features.

"You don't know me well enough to love me. You can't-." He stopped and took a deep breath. "I'm a murderer."

"Harry," she groaned. "Don't let that crazy woman today ruin things. Killing a scumbag like Nott, after everything in the papers, that doesn't make you-"

"That's not what I'm talking about," he interjected.

"What?"

Harry sat down and lifted his left hand up. He was quiet for a moment, just staring at his fingers. "Sometimes I think I can still see a little bit of a tan line, but I'm pretty sure it's just my mind playing tricks on me."

Daphne frowned and sat up with her back against the headboard. "What are you talking about?"

He was still staring at his hand when he answered her in a low voice. "I was married."

"Married?" she gasped.

He nodded, still not looking her in the face. "Her name was Sarah. We met at a New Year's Eve party. Within ten months, we were married. Sirius gave me so much shit about how I was rushing into things, that I was too young." A grin flickered across his face before it faded away. "He said I was making the same mistake as my dad. But that only made it better. And she was the most wonderful person I'd ever known."

"What happened?"

"It was a drunk driver," he mumbled. "One day I went to work and the next thing I knew, she was just gone."

She reached out and took his hand that was now shaking. "I'm so sorry, Harry."

His eyes were closed as he continued his story. "The guy made bail after he was arrested. In the state where it happened, he was looking at maybe three or four years in prison. Probably less if he made parole. He stole my wife, my future, and it was only going to cost him a few years.

"So, I tracked him down," Harry's voice droned on. "I kidnapped him and took him somewhere we wouldn't be discovered. For the next three days, I tortured him. I barely ate or slept because I needed him to feel as much pain as he had caused. Eventually, I came upon an idea to finish him off. I compelled him to get drunk and drive again- only this time, he was going to smash himself into a brick wall. That's how he died. I placed a tracking charm on him and followed to make sure.

"For a few weeks, it helped. The pain wasn't gone, but it was dulled. As time went on, it got worse again. That's why I had to leave America. Everywhere I looked, everything in our apartment, it all reminded me of her."

Daphne crawled over and embraced him.

He sighed. "I don't regret killing him. I just wish I had done it before he had taken her from me."

"I understand," she cooed.

His voice caught in his throat as he struggled to speak again. Finally, he whispered, "She was pregnant."

Daphne squeezed him even tighter, but said nothing.

There was nearly silence in the room, only broken by a clock ticking out in the hall and Harry's own ragged breathing.

"You deserve better than me," he said.

Daphne grabbed his face, forcing him to look at her as she glared. "Isn't that my decision?"

"I-"

She cut him off. "Do you think you're the only one who's ever done something wrong before? Merlin, Harry, only little children are innocent."

Daphne shook her head as he frowned at her. "Let me tell you about why I dye my hair. Why I use glamours and makeup and..." She paused and took his hand again. "Didn't you ever think how odd that was? Didn't you wonder why I did things like that?

"It was my second year at Hogwarts," she began her story, something she'd never actually told anyone before. "I had turned thirteen and went through my biggest growth spurt, and it wasn't just my height. Oh, I was always on the tall side, but by then I shot up to about five foot seven, and it made people notice. I think my robes were about six inches shorter than they had been when I started the previous fall, and... my breasts were bigger too. Not the biggest around, but enough to draw attention.

"In May, a couple of weeks before the year ended early when that Weasley girl disappeared, Marcus Flint came up to me." Her face showed nothing short of utter revulsion. "He was the quidditch captain and such a troll. People said he looked a bit like one, this big brutish thug with awful teeth. Eugh! He was as dumb as a troll too because he had to repeat sixth year. Then he said something about how maybe the next fall he could take me to Hogsmeade, and I wanted to throw up when he leered at me."

Daphne paused for a moment. "You need to understand, that bastard Snape always covered for the Slytherins. Maybe that could have been a good thing in certain situations, but he went out of his way for his favorites like Flint and Malfoy. I didn't trust him to protect the rest of us from someone like Flint. Not that I knew of anything too bad ever happening, but..."

Daphne sighed. "Anyway, that summer I learned some glamour charms so that I wouldn't stand out. Nothing too drastic, though, because I didn't want anyone to suspect me. I found that non-magical hair dye would be easy to use too. After Marcus Flint, I just never wanted to be leered at again. Not from him or any other creep. When I went back to Hogwarts in the fall, it worked. Flint never noticed me again.

"Later on, I developed a bit of a reputation as being aloof and quiet, which was fine," she shrugged. "I was never the most social person anyway."

Harry cocked his head. "Okay, I guess that explains-"

"That's not the end of the story," Daphne interrupted. "Did you know that Greengrass Apothecary is responsible for most of the potions that people use at home, at least for the people who don't brew for themselves? Shortly after I graduated and started working there, Marcus Flint's father came in. His son had developed an illness and he needed a cure. Well, I made the potion for them, but I added a couple of extra ingredients. Nothing that would ruin the healing effect, but afterwards, Flint was rendered permanently sterile.

"From the gossip I heard a couple of months later, he was impotent too," a nasty smirk flashed across her face. "They took him to St. Mungo's, but there wasn't any cure they could find. Do you know how I felt when I heard that?"

Harry shook his head.

"Triumphant."

He snorted. "Remind me never to get on your bad side."

She smiled for a second and then raised her hand to run her fingers across the cheek that had been slapped. "You're afraid."

"What?"

"You're afraid of being in love again," Daphne said, then she raised an eyebrow at him. "Is that what happened with Susan Bones? You pushed her away?"

Harry sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "It was just supposed to be a fling, but Susan wanted to get serious. I couldn't do that."

Daphne forced herself to ask the follow up question. "Am I just a fling too?"

When he looked at her, she could have sworn that his eyes had never seemed so incredibly, deeply green.

"I don't think you could ever be just a fling, even if that was what I wanted."

Her resulting smile lit up the room. "Good. Now, why don't we both freshen up and go out somewhere to eat."

"Do I have time to change?" he asked.

"Don't bother, you look great," she answered. "Besides, I'm starting to get really hungry."

"As you wish."

They both climbed off the bed and Daphne stepped out into the hall. "Isn't there a bathroom..."

"One down on the left," he pointed to a door just across the way.

A few minutes later, they were downstairs, with Daphne leaning over Harry's shoulder as he sat at the table using his laptop computer to look through the listings of restaurants. Every time he used some piece of technology like that, she wondered at what else she had missed out on in the muggle world. She had a feeling that being with Harry meant she was going to experience a number of things that she hadn't even considered before.

And maybe that was a truly wonderful thing.

"Does any of this look good to you?" he asked.

"All of it looks good to me," she grinned. "You pick."

"How about Italian then?"

"Italian is always yummy, but let's not go all the way to Italy this time," she teased.

"I wouldn't mind, you know."

"Yes, but I can't apparate all the way there by myself," Daphne replied. "Let's find somewhere good that's a little more local."

"Alright," he shrugged. "You know, if we're going to be telling big secrets tonight, maybe I should tell you the biggest one I know."

"Color me intrigued, Mister Potter."

Harry turned to Daphne's teasing smile and gave her a kiss.

"Would you like to know the secret of how Voldemort died?"

Her shocked gasp and resulting wide-eyed nod made him laugh.

"It should be an interesting story over dinner."