As their dates and walks continued over the next month, Daphne couldn't help but feel more connected to Harry's company. Despite his awkward quirks, he was an interesting person. Certainly a humbler personality than what public perception had created of him in school. It surprised her that he was not more closed off regarding his past, but he had been forthcoming to share his experiences and about the losses he'd suffered.

Her attraction to Harry only grew as they spent time together. She'd paid more attention to different quirks or expressions that she'd become more aware of as he also grew comfortable around her.

She could tell when his days were long because of training or assignments versus the days that he spent in the office working on paperwork. She couldn't help but want to extend him something on the days when his face was long and he appeared exhausted. During one of their dates, Harry had dropped into their conversation that his favorite sweet was a Chocolate Frog, and that he collected the cards. It prompted her to begin storing a supply of Chocolate Frogs in her desk to offer him. His face would almost immediately perk up as he took it from her, likewise she always had this unplaceable feeling coursing through her whenever she'd see him uplifted. That feeling was rather annoying, like when she'd forgotten something and she couldn't summon the memory.

In turn, he seemed to be able to tell something similar for her when she had her rough days. She could swear on her rough days were the ones when Harry would choose to grab her hand and give her an extra squeeze of encouragement.

October 18th was Daphne's birthday and she was looking forward to what her family had planned to celebrate. Knowing how much she enjoyed her special day, her parents would often make special trips to Hogsmeade on the weekend to be with her. This year though she was more excited for the occasion since she'd finally have the opportunity to be home with them.

That morning, she'd taken extra time to pick out one of her favorite casual outfits. The wide smile that stretched across her face quickly dissipated as she'd joined her parents for breakfast. No one brought it up. Regular looks over at her parents as she ate her breakfast told her they may have forgotten. It wasn't like them though to forget.

"I'm 19 today," she finally inserted as her parents were about to excuse themselves.

Her father, who had been halfway out of his chair, only responded, "Are you really? Time flies. Happy Birthday, dear." Her shoulders slumped at her father's passive well wishes just before he left the dining room. Her mother followed suit with similar sentiments; said she'd have the house elves make her favorite before disappearing. Sitting back in her chair, Daphne couldn't believe what this day was becoming. She'd just been left alone in the dining room to wallow in self-pity that her parents had neglected the day she looked forward to every year.

Throughout the day she received owls from her friends with birthday wishes. Tracey, Pansy, Draco, all sent something, and even Blaise had written her a short note. An owl from Astoria was notably missing, which disappointed her even more than her parents forgetting. While she'd hoped this might be an occasion where her sister would come around, she shouldn't have been surprised considering from last correspondence it was clear Daphne had been upset with her as well.

Daphne caught her tongue that evening when the dinner that appeared before her was certainly not her favorite dinner, but Astoria's. She wasn't sure what had gotten into her parents this year, but rather than confront them on it she chose to internally stew over it. Perhaps tomorrow she would say something and, as tactfully as possible, request that they pull it together for her 20th next year.

Daphne was in a foul mood about her birthday when she arrived at the Ministry the next morning. When she made it to her desk, there was a mound of paperwork that had come in over the weekend. She was deep into processing them when Harry arrived, otherwise she would have been more welcoming.

She frowned, noting that he was carrying files. "Please tell me those are not additional cases for intake."

Harry lifted his hand to rub the back of his neck. "They are, unfortunately."

She sighed before gesturing towards the rest of the pile where he could place the new additions. She continued to scribble away on the pages.

He cleared his throat, "I brought over the files because I wanted to see if you had a minute."

Her quill stilled as she realized it was out of the ordinary for him to drop them off. A surge of guilt crossed through as she thought about how aloof she probably seemed towards him. She took a breath to reset herself, knowing that Harry certainly didn't deserve to have to deal with the emotions that carried over from her birthday.

She looked up and readjusted herself in her chair to show him that he had her full attention. "I'm sorry, Harry. What's going on?"

Harry shifted uncomfortably, "Your mother owled me."

Her shoulders tensed immediately, her hands unconsciously grasping the arms of her chair.

"What did she want?"

"Nothing concerning," Harry lifted his hands to reassure her, "She wrote me to ask if I would join the three of you for dinner tonight."

A pang of something-jealousy, or resentment, perhaps-ran through her as she thought of her mother planning a dinner with Harry but completely neglecting celebrating her own daughter's birthday. Again, centering herself, Daphne forced herself to remember that anything related to Harry was a product of her own doing.

"Did she say anything else or did she just ask about dinner?" Her fingers lined the sides of the folder she had open in front of her as a distraction. However, the fidgeting caused her to miss his abnormal pause before he answered as well as the slight alarm in his reply.

"No, no, she didn't mention anything else. Only dinner," Harry's fingers had started tapping the edge of her desk, "I would guess they want to get to know me better."

If her mother's only motive was to get to know Harry, then she supposed there should be no concern with him coming over-that is, unless he was not comfortable attending. "Are you okay with joining us?"

"Of course. I just wanted to check with you before I replied. You know…" his voice lowered, "A rule-no dropping by the other's house uninvited."

How could she have forgotten? It was her own rule. "Good, I'm okay with it. But know that there's no pressure from me." It was good that they were on the same page when it came to anything that involved their family or friends, especially since her parents appeared to be captivated by him.

When Harry kept standing there, she felt compelled to say more. "I think it makes sense...to have you come over. I know that my father enjoyed the Quidditch match the two of you attended. I shouldn't be surprised that they'd want to have you over again. It's a normal part of any relationship, right? Spending time with your girlfriend's parents."

"Brilliant. I'll plan to be there tonight," He stated with a final, affirmative tap against her desk, "I hope the rest of your day goes well, Daphne. Sorry, I had to add to your workload."

She smiled in appreciation. "I'll get through it. Have a good rest of your day as well."

He smiled at her in return as he left. Strangely, the sight made her feel uplifted despite the gloomy morning.

Later that afternoon, Harry sent her a message that he was leaving work early to take care of a few things before dinner that evening. It felt strange, walking to the lifts solo. Harry hadn't been away often and walking together was routine now. Something felt amiss now that he was not by her side.

Arriving home, she sought out her mother to see if anything was needed before Harry arrived. When she found her mother in the dining room, her bag almost slipped from her fingers. The dining hall was tastefully decorated with a reasonable amount of balloons and streamers in her favorite colors.

Her mother was directing the house elves as they hung a banner that read, 'Happy Birthday.' A slight gasp fell from her lips as her mouth dropped open in shock.

At the sound, her mother turned in Daphne's direction. "Daphne! Surprise!" She was then enveloped into her mothers arms. "Bet you thought we had really forgotten the occasion, didn't you?" Her mother muttered the words into her ear just before she took a step back.

It was all a ruse. The realization just further made Daphne feel as though she'd been on a rollercoaster over the past day. Wanting to respond, but uncertain what to say, Daphne just stood there opening and closing her mouth a few times.

"You'll have to forgive your father and I for having our fun, but we really wanted to do something memorable since it's the first year we've had you back for your special day."

Memorable, Daphne supposed was one way to describe it. Still having a hard time figuring out what to say, but appreciative of her parents' efforts, she pulled her mother in for another hug and thanked her. She felt herself sink further into her mother's arms, relieved her parents had not actually forgotten her birthday.

Feeling a pat on her back, her mother pulled back and grasped her shoulders. "Now, you should go and get changed. I imagine Harry will be here anytime."

Harry... Harry was coming over for her surprise birthday dinner.

"Mother, did you wrap him into this plan?"

Her mother, who had walked back over to supervise the elves, looked back over her shoulder quizzically. "Of course, dear. He was more than happy to go along with it. I was surprised the two of you hadn't planned anything but then it made sense when he shared he had something for work yesterday. I wanted to surprise you last night but with his schedule we postponed it to tonight."

He had been shifty earlier, and she'd been too distracted to notice it. Harry had been involved in the whole thing.

A crack suddenly sounded in the room and Wodby appeared. "Miss, Mr. Potter has arrived."

Dashing out the door, she wanted to reach Harry before anyone else could. When she ungracefully rushed into the room, he was standing just off the fireplace.

She was still panting to catch her breath from running into the room. "Y-you knew it was my birthday. You plotted this with my mother." It came out much more accusatory that she had planned.

Harry's eyes widened. "Did I already miss the surprise?"

She was shocked that's what he was focused on. "Yes, mother already told me all about the plan. Why didn't you mention it when I asked you earlier?"

Harry softly smirked at her in amusement. "Because it was your birthday. Which you didn't tell me about, by the way. I wasn't going to ruin the surprise."

"It's just," Daphne started. "I didn't tell you because I didn't think you'd actually need to know..."

Harry jumped back in. "Daphne, I'm sorry, let's take a step back. Happy Birthday. It's really okay you didn't tell me but I'm glad that I get to join your family celebrating."

She felt a rush through her that she couldn't place but she quickly cast it aside. Harry was always so sweet and genuine.

"Did they know that I didn't tell you?" She asked.

"No, don't worry. It was all over letters. When she wrote me last week there was no indication that I didn't know about it."

She felt relieved at that, not having anticipated her mothers scheming. "Okay, good. You should know that I love to celebrate my birthday. I was really put out when they brushed it off yesterday, hence my terrible attitude earlier. It would seem odd to my parents if I hadn't told you."

Harry nodded. "It'll be fine. I think we can get through the evening."

Appreciating his reassurance, she stood straight and readied herself. She led him down the hall towards the dining room. When they were outside the entrance, she excused herself to go and change. As she made her way to her room, she could faintly hear her father welcoming Harry and a pleased smile formed on her lips.

Returning to the dining room, her parents and Harry were now seated and waiting for her. Taking in the room, the decorations were lovelier than she'd recalled from earlier; she hadn't stopped to appreciate them amidst her shock. As she walked towards her place setting, Harry stood to hold her chair out for her. Looking at him amused, she noted his face was slightly flushed as he helped her.

The evening's meal was an assortment of her favorite foods and to her amazement, she quickly learned that Harry liked them as well.

"So, Harry," her father started. "Was Daphne disappointed that you two didn't do anything for her birthday?"

A loud clink echoed in the room as Daphne's spoon hit her plate. She internally chastised herself for not telling Harry about her birthday. At the time, she hadn't wanted to burden him with it considering they weren't actually together. She should have at least arranged to send herself a flower arrangement or an obnoxiously sized plush niffler or a pygmy puff. Something to be delivered that she could have played off as a gift from him.

Harry's laughter broke through her string of concern. "I think she was a bit," he replied and Daphne felt her cheeks flush. "Even though I had to work, she did seem a bit cross with me this morning."

Her father chuckled at the comment. "Now, Daphne's been a good sport with all of us and our games. Despite that, I hope tonight is a lovely time for you, dear."

As the evening went on, she certainly did enjoy herself, and she was still captured by how well her parents got on with Harry. The dinner conversation began to enter alarming territory when her mother almost started telling him about embarrassing stories from when she was a child, to which she quickly shut down to Harry's amusement.

After dinner, the elves brought out an outrageous cake that would have served more than four people. It made her curious about what they might plan for her 20th if this was the extravagance created for turning 19. When her parents adjourned for the evening, Daphne's father invited Harry to his study for a drink to which Harry politely declined.

Momentarily disappointed, her father figured Harry's decline meant that he wanted to spend time with the birthday girl. Knowing that wasn't true, Daphne felt a squirm in her stomach, unsure of what to feel about the fact that Harry would be leaving soon.

After bidding her parents goodnight, Daphne walked with Harry to see him out.

"Any other plans this evening?" Harry asked, turning slightly towards her as they walked down the hall.

She was taken aback by his question. "No, I don't think so. My parents will probably have a nightcap before they go to bed so I might join them. Maybe read for awhile and then call it a night."

Harry hummed at her response. Glancing back down the hallway they'd just walked down and the back to her, "Would they miss you if you didn't join them this evening?"

Daphne, unsure of how to respond to that question, started and stopped answering a few times as she tried to decipher why he might be asking. "I, uh, suppose not. It's not an obligation."

"Do you want to go out with me?"

Her heart stopped. Had she heard him correctly? That sounded an awful lot like he was asking her on a date. "Umm… I…"

"Sorry, I should have worded that differently. Let me take you out for your birthday. Just as friends. I know your parents had their own agenda to surprise you for your birthday but I'd like the opportunity to help you celebrate."

She contemplated the offer. The excitement that was stirring in response to his offer felt odd. It was incredibly kind of Harry to offer to take her out. Still, she hesitated, having no idea what he was envisioning.

"It's already late. I mean, we both have work-"

"We'll be fine." Harry interjected as he shrugged his shoulders casually. Obviously not finding her excuse to be good enough. "Come on, I've had all evening to think of a few ideas of what we could do."

Her heart felt heavy, not wanting to complicate anything. As she looked up into his hopeful eyes though, she knew the next word that came from her mouth poured straight from her heart and not her head.

"Okay."

Daphne didn't know why she was in such a fit of nerves. It started when Harry sent her to change into something nicer until they arrived at a beautiful restaurant in Diagon. She kept reminding herself that this was not an actual date. It was a friend, taking another friend out for their birthday.

Considering how late it was, she hadn't even considered that they could get into such a nice place. However, what she continually forgot was that the boy she found herself in a fake relationship with was currently the most famous wizard in the country. He probably could just walk into any restaurant like this and get a table.

The hostess led them to an intimate table setting just off of the dance floor. A bouquet of flowers was laid across her seat. Daphne was impressed this could have all been arranged on the fly. She turned back towards Harry as he helped her into her seat for the second time that night. The thought crossed her mind that everyone here might start to get the wrong idea before she blushed at the ridiculousness of the statement. They'd never gone somewhere so fancy before and this felt more real.

"Harry-" He must have been able to sense the concern in her voice.

"Have to play the part of the boyfriend, right? Don't worry about it, it's your birthday" He whispered lightly in her ear, clearly sensing her astonishment at the lengths he was currently going.

They both settled into their places, reviewing the dessert menu while their waiter poured them each a glass of wine.

She couldn't help but laugh, "I honestly never would have thought this would be the type of place you'd like to come."

"I don't, really. But since the end of the war, I've found myself in far more establishments like this as people have requested to meet with me."

They browsed their menus for a few moments before Daphne was able to easily convince Harry to share a dessert. Both of them were still rather full from dinner. The waiter came to take their order and it arrived speedily.

Daphne couldn't help her wandering eyes towards the dance floor as they shared dessert-watching various couples dancing closely together, showing their affections towards one another. It was easy to become entranced by the sight. She tried everything not to imagine Harry and her dancing from fourth year-the awkward hand placement and the feeling of her hand in his sweaty palms.

Every so often she'd catch Harry's stare when she'd look back and she'd try to revert their conversation to a normal topic, hoping he might not feel pressure to ask her to dance. Everything he had arranged this evening was more than enough. She noticed Harry shift in his chair and set down his fork before leaning towards her. She watched him curiously as he appeared to be trying to say something; a hand running through his hair as he began to mutter.

"I need to come clean.," She swallowed her bite to give him her full attention, interested in what he wanted to tell her, "I didn't just plan everything this evening...I planned this after your mother wrote to me."

Her eyes widened at the admission. "I, um...don't know what to say to that." Not only did she not know what to say, but she also wasn't sure what to think-she already hadn't been sure what had inspired Harry to invite her out; it was all the more muddy to know that he'd been planning this display beyond this evening. There was a fluttering in her stomach that was refusing to be suppressed.

He nervously bobbed his head, "I don't think I've ever told you how thoughtful I think you are. It's amazing the small details of our conversation that you recall. Sometimes, I can't even remember when I shared them with you..." Her heart felt like it had ceased beating as he rambled on. "When your mother told me it was your birthday, I wanted to do something just as thoughtful for you."

"Thank you, Harry. You really didn't need to. I also think your compliment is far more generous than the truth." She shook her head, as if it would sort out all of the jumbled words running through her mind into something coherent. "You're a really great 'boyfriend.' I hope that Ginny sees that. And that in the end, you can get what you want."

A sharp pain ran through her as her words acknowledged their reality, and for a moment she wasn't sure what she really meant by them, as if there was a chance maybe Harry might want something-or someone-else in the end.

They were both looking straight at each other. Harry had a sad smile on his face that she didn't have the first clue as to interpret and she was certain her own expression displayed nothing but uncertainty.

Thankfully, the waiter chose that moment to bring the check, putting an end to whatever troublesome territory they were heading towards.

After they left the restaurant, they took a walk out into Muggle London and into a nearby park. It was almost completely cleared out considering how late it was. Daphne was thankful for it. It finally felt like an opportunity in public where she was finally able to breathe and not have to constantly worry about bustling and crowded streets of people that they had to perform for.

The moment that Harry slipped his hand into hers, she jumped at the contact. She found herself quickly scanning their surroundings to see if somehow someone they knew had appeared. But it was only a moment later that he stopped, and halted her along with him.

"What is it?" There hadn't been anyone else, she was unsure what had inspired his peculiar action.

His eyes were glued down towards his feet which were scraping against the stone walkway.

"I noticed your interest in the dancing back at the restaurant," He peered back up at her, as if it was taking all of his courage, "I recall, from our conversation in fourth year, that you enjoy dancing…"

She felt a heat in her cheeks knowing that she wasn't the only one of them thrown back into that memory.

"Would you dance with me?" The question poured out abruptly from his mouth.

Her eyes widened; the question completely unexpected. "Y-You want to dance with me? Here? In the middle of the park?"

His eyes closed and she felt a slight pull of her arm as he took a step back. She suddenly regretted her reaction. The next words out of Harry's mouth started backtracking on the suggestion. As she felt his hand start to loosen around hers, she quickly tightened her grasp.

"Yes, I'll dance with you." It came out sounding far more desperate than she'd intended and she cringed slightly.

He held her in another intense gaze before stepping a bit closer into her space. At first, it was the same awkward, stiff movements from childhood as they approached each other. Once her arms were wrapped around his neck, their embrace came together much more smoothly than it had four years ago.

As they moved to a gentle sway, she felt far more comfortable in his arms than before. He held one hand on the small of her back and the other gently held hers. She was impressed that Harry had yet to step on her toes. Though there was no music playing, she couldn't stop the smile forming on her lips as she started to hear the distant echo of the track McGonagall had played.

Stepping with him back and forth, Daphne slowly forgot where they were. Only registering the feel of Harry's arm around her and the proximity of his head to hers. She watched as his eyes suddenly drifted down towards her lips and she thought maybe her mind was playing tricks on her. Her heart was pounding so hard that she was worried he might be able to hear it. Just as his head inched closer towards hers, she felt a pain shoot through her foot and a mumbled apology quickly followed from him.

Not only was she rattled by the almost kiss, but she felt an ache at the loss of his touch. He had stepped back from her, rubbing his hand against the back of his neck, recoiling and recovering from his literal misstep.

Pushing aside her disappointment, when she met his eyes and noted his rose colored complexion, she could no longer help but giggle at how familiar the whole situation was. He eventually joined in with his own amusement as they acknowledged the abrupt end to their dance. He tilted his head in the direction of the way they came and they started making their way back towards the Leaky Cauldron.

They did not resume holding hands and simply walked alongside one another. However, she didn't want their evening to end in silence.

"I'd say that you have vastly improved." She offered, hoping he heard the humor in her voice.

Another laugh came out of him and a moment later she felt his elbow gently meet her side in return. A smile stretched across her face and a heat rushed through her. At that moment, she knew her heart was in trouble.

I'm incredibly grateful for those of you following this story. I am so appreciative of your kind and encouraging reviews! Many many thanks for iforgottocall and all of the help she gave me on this chapter. I hope that you are continuing to enjoy the story!