'Be good for your grandmother,' Harry tells Teddy, hugging him tightly before stepping back in line with Hermione. They're running late for the gala, of course - one thing he never realised about kids is much longer getting ready takes with them around. But as Teddy slips his tiny, stubby hand into Andromeda's elegant one, so innocently and openly loving, Harry's heart warms. He knows he wouldn't have it any other way.

Harry and Hermione wave goodbye before holding onto each other's arm and Apparating straight to the Ministry atrium. The hulking room is empty except for signage pointing towards the function room, and they hurry towards it, Hermione's heels clipping against the polished floor. Loud chatter surges from the open double doors in waves, harsh and overwhelming, threatening to keel him over. Crowds have never bothered him, but unwarranted attention does, and his feet falter with the urge to turn around and go home.

'You know, we can use Teddy as an excuse to leave early, too,' Harry points out. 'Skip out after the meal and before the dancing.'

Her answering laughter echoes around the room, grounding him. 'Any other year, I might have taken you up on that.'

'But not with Fred?'

Her grin is all the confirmation he needs, and he smiles back reluctantly. 'I actually want to dance, even if I have no chance in a dragon's den of keeping up with him.'

He snorts. 'He and George definitely add their own flair to dancing, don't they?'

'So does Luna.' She nudges his shoulder. 'Promise me you'll ask her to dance.'

'Are you kidding?' he asks. 'If I have to stay that long, it'll be the highlight of my evening.'

They step through the door, and Harry's dragged back to the present, though his skin no longer crawls with trepidation. Like it is every year, it's packed with people in elaborate dress robes with so many fancy frills and stylings that Harry thinks they would look better if they were half as expensive. He scans the gathering impatiently and relaxes as his gaze settles on Fred and Luna engaged in a spirited conversation at a table near the centre of the room, two vacant chairs between them.

It takes several minutes for Harry and Hermione to weave their way through the tables, stopping every now and again to return a greeting or answer a question. When they finally reach their table and settle into their seats, Harry feels as if he's avoided a whole Quidditch pitch of bludgers.

'Sorry again for being late,' Harry says. 'We hoped to get here earlier.'

'Don't mention it.' Eyes shining, Fred waves a hand through the air dismissively. 'We've been discussing products for the shop; Luna's mad brilliant.'

Luna smiles, her face glowing with happiness. 'That's the first time I've been called mad as a compliment before.'

'People are idiots.'

It's great to see them having a good time, especially when it's Harry's fault that they were left alone for so long. Conspiratorially, he leans in and stage-whispers, 'Be careful. He wants to use your brain for evil.'

Her laughter rings like chimes on a breeze. 'That's fine with me.'

As he pulls away, his gaze drifts down to her dress. It's navy blue, with fire red roses stitched across one sleeve and diagonally across the front of the bodice, and one side of the hem falls far lower on her legs than the other. 'Your dress is nice,' he says, and he hears Hermione's faint sigh at his lack of eloquence.

'Thank you.' Luna's smile grows even larger, and he swallows hard when his heart unexpectedly jolts at the sight. He's always thought she was nice-looking enough, but he was wrong. In her element like this, she's beautiful. 'I usually wouldn't wear these colours together, but I thought it was a nice mix of Ravenclaw and Gryffindor.'

'It suits you,' he says, unable to find the words for everything else, especially here, especially now. He carefully sips his water and tries not to react to the glances Fred and Hermione are sending each other out the corner of his eye. 'Is Ron here?'

Fred gestures out towards the mass of people mingling on what will eventually become the dancefloor. 'He and Macey are doing the rounds. She seems nice. A bit timid, but a few dinners with the family will knock that out of her.'

-x-

Setting his cutlery down on his plate, Harry chews the last bite of his cheesecake as Ron and Macey discuss their first few dates. He's grateful that they're all at the same table despite working in different departments; their seating arrangement has Kingsley's fingerprints all over it.

He isn't sold on Macey — what Fred calls timid, he views as standoffish, since she's perfectly happy to talk when she's the focus of attention. But she seems to make Ron happy, which is enough for him. Besides, a public place like this isn't the easiest place to meet a not-yet-a-boyfriend's lifelong mates.

'The flowers were a sweet gesture,' Macey says, smiling up at Ron with the seeds of adoration in her eyes.

Hermione, her hand intertwined with Fred's as though, now their relationship is public, they want to make up for all the time they spent concealing it. 'Very thoughtful, too.'

'Were there chrysanthemums?' Luna asks. 'They're my favourite.'

Macey's mouth pinches together for a moment, then her expression clears and she says breezily, 'No. They were proteas.'

'They're lovely too, especially for a Gryffindor. They mean courage and change, did you know?'

Ron shrugs. 'I just thought they looked nice, and Macey likes the colour pink. Maybe the choice was appropriate, though.' He takes Macey's hand in his. 'That first date was a big change for both of us.'

'A good change, from the look of it,' Harry says, and Ron smiles broadly.

'We should start mingling,' Hermione says to Fred, who grimaces but stands without complaint. 'We can do a round then excuse ourselves to dance.'

Harry doesn't even try to hold in his sigh. Unfortunately, for them, this isn't just a party. Kingsley asked them to spend some time with people from other departments since the secondary aim of the gala, after showing appreciation to Ministry employees, is encouraging interdepartmental contact. It's one of the main reasons he was so reluctant to come tonight.

'I should too,' he tells Luna apologetically. 'You don't have to come with me if you'd prefer to stay here.'

To his surprise, she doesn't even hesitate. 'It wouldn't be a very supportive not-a-date move to make you face it alone. Besides, walking's good for the soul.'

'Let's go, then,' he says, and as they circle the room obediently, he finds himself actually enjoying the process. It's hard to take himself, or the strangers, too seriously when she's by his side with her charming mixture of genuine wisdom and tension-breaking comments.

'Can you attend all of these with me?' he asks between leaving a man from the Magical Education department and approaching a fellow Auror.

'I would love to… as long as I'm not in prison because Fred used my brain for evil, of course.'

He laughs. 'Of course.'