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Disclaimer: I own nothing, nothing I tell you! All the characters, places etc. belong to JKR.
*** HAPPILY EVER AFTER?
*** It was truly amazing how much 'stuff' one could acquire over the space of a couple of years, Hermione decided. Packing up all her books alone had taken several hours, and there was also all of Harry's belongings to consider as well. Avalon Cottage was quite a lot smaller than the Cottage, though this was understandable, after all - there were only going to be the two of them (for a few more months, at least) rather than the six of them. It was a Wizarding cottage, and a few miles outside of a small town in north Wales. The town was a fairly typical Welsh town, and was on the border of two counties which marked the division between Mid and North Wales. The pretty stone cottages seemed to follow the contours of the valley and it was one of those places people went to 'get away from it all'. There were four bedrooms, a kitchen, living room, large bathroom, dining room and even a study as well as several small rooms, which they were planning on expanding magically. Like the Cottage, the place looked smaller on the outside than it was on the inside. Harry seemed to have invested a lot of money into the house for them, as it was already furnished. When Hermione had asked him about this, he had become rather secretive, just telling her that it was for their future, and the future of their family. To Hermione, it seemed that Harry was becoming almost obsessive about the baby. Maybe it was the fact that he had never had a real family, well, not one that he could remember at any rate. Either way, it was beginning to get annoying. The study was a large and spacious room which, around midday, filled with a sort of glorious light that illuminated the bookcases. At the same time there was a sort of inherent atmosphere in the room that reminded Hermione strongly of the Hogwarts Library. Carefully arranging her books (this was a perfect opportunity to sort them out), Hermione couldn't help but think about the times she had barricaded herself in the library when she had problems with Harry. Or Ron for that matter. Before Ron and Lavender had set her up with Harry (or at least tried), Hermione had sworn to herself that she wouldn't fall for one of her best friends again. Her relationship with Ron had lasted around six months. While Parvati was off snogging Dean Thomas in one of the empty classrooms and Seamus off with his girlfriend, Harry had become closer to Lavender. The two had eventually dated. Ron had broken up with her (and Lavender with Harry), both believing that Hermione and Harry were cheating on them with each other. This had not been true, but these break-ups had spurned a long-lasting relationship between Ron and Lavender. Hermione had been angry at first with Ron and Lavender for trying to set her up with Harry, but now she was glad and her friend's persistence had turned out to be one of the best things to ever happen to her, as the swelling of her stomach testified. Placing 'Mandrakes: How to Handle Them Without Dying' onto the shelf, she heard a click as the door opened slowly. Harry timidly around the door. "Is it all right to come in?" he asked cautiously. Earlier when he had interrupted her, she had snapped at him and hit him with the jellylegs curse. Definitely not a pleasant experience. She nodded feeling rather guilty, and Harry walked into the room, shutting the door behind him. He sat beside her and placed a kiss on her cheek. "How are you both feeling?" he asked gently, moving a hand onto her stomach. "I think he's hungry," Hermione admitted. "I, on the other hand, need a kiss." "Well I think I can arrange that," Harry replied, pressing his lips firmly to hers. No matter how many times he kissed her, it always felt like the first time, so fresh and new - one of the best experiences in the world. Pulling back, he smiled at his wife. "And what would she like to eat?" Hermione couldn't help but laugh at that. It had become an ongoing debate as to whether the baby was a boy or a girl. Harry insisted it was a girl whereas Hermione was adamant that it was a boy. "A very buttery piece of toast," she told him with a grin. She brushed down her robes (it was amazing how much dust the books could collect) and placed a book in the only available space on the shelf. Following Harry out to the kitchen, she stopped him just outside of the door. "I think someone's in there," she whispered. They listened - she was right; two voices could be heard in conversation, though not clearly enough for them to be able to distinguish who they belonged to. Harry pulled out his wand, and striking a very 'Mission Impossible' stance, he pushed the door open, pointing his wand threateningly at the first person he saw. Sirius dropped the teapot in surprise. "Blimey, Harry. What's that for?" he asked. Harry almost dropped his wand as well. "We thought you were intruders!" he protested. There was something odd about the way Sirius looked, but Harry couldn't quite put his finger on it. His hair was shorter than normal and he was more clean-shaven than Harry had ever seen him. Then it clicked; he was wearing a Muggle suit, something that Sirius never did. It looked to be an expensive suit as well. "Not that it's not nice to see you, Sirius, but what are you doing here?" asked Hermione. "Ah, well, I wanted to come and see your new house," Sirius said, pulling out his wand and fixing the teapot (it's spout had fallen off). "And bring you a present from Dumbledore." He pointed at a large square object that was propped up on the kitchen table, covered by a dust sheet. Curiously, Harry pulled it off to reveal a painting of himself and Hermione. More accurately, it was a painting of himself and Hermione at Hogwarts; the picture that had been painted when they had been named Head Boy and Head Girl. It was a tradition at Hogwarts for a portrait of the Head students to be painted every year. "Thank you," breathed Hermione, smiling at Sirius. "It's wonderful." Harry nodded in agreement. "I actually have another reason for coming here," said Sirius after a moments silence. He moved closer to the other person who had been in the kitchen with him, a woman who looked to be about Sirius's age. She had sandy blonde hair and blue-green eyes. She was dressed in a long, dark red skirt and a white blouse, and was smiling nervously. "This is my wife, Katrina." "Your what?" asked Harry, completely amazed by this. Hermione and Sirius ignored him. "It's very nice to meet you," Hermione said politely. "So how did you meet Sirius. Were you at Hogwarts together?" Katrina shook her head. "Actually, no. We met on holiday in Melbourne. I'm actually a Muggle." She turned to Sirius. "That's the correct term, isn't it?" Sirius nodded. "Oh. I suppose Sirius telling you about magic was a bit of a shock," said Harry. "Again, no. My daughter is a witch. She went to Hogwarts. I don't know if you knew her. Her name is Katie. She was in Gryffindor." "Katie Bell?" asked Hermione. "Oh, so you did know her," said Katrina, looking slightly relieved. "I was on the Quidditch team with her," explained Harry. "I was Seeker." Katrina nodded. "It's a very small world, isn't it?" she said. "Extremely," agreed Harry. "Ronald Weasley, what have you done with my wand?" Lavender's panicked voice rang through the house. Lavender had spent the weekend at the Cottage and was just about to leave for Hogwarts. When she'd found her wand, that is. "Have you checked the bedroom?" "Of course!" Lavender yelled back to him. By the sound of it, Ron was in the kitchen. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair in exasperation. Her hair was currently a dark blonde colour - it had been a vivid pink, but Professor Dumbledore had insisted that she tone it down a bit. She made her way into the kitchen. Sure enough, Ron was busy making something in a very large cauldron. "Is that a potion or lunch?" she asked, peering into he cauldron which was full of a lumpy mixture. Ron gave her a scathing look. "Lunch," he told her after a moment. "But it's not finished yet. Are you staying for lunch?" "Only if I don't find my wand." She scanned the shelves. "Are you sure you haven't seen it?" "Have you checked your bags?" "Yes," she told him. Nevertheless, she went through her bag, just to prove him wrong. After a moment, she pulled out her wand, looking decidedly embarrassed. "Here it is," she said sheepishly. Ron grinned broady at her then turned back to his cooking. "I don't know how I'd cope without you," she told him, putting the wand in her pocket where she wouldn't lose it. "And I don't know how I'd cope without you," Ron said. He put a lid on his cauldron. "Why do you have to live at Hogwarts?" Lavender sighed. "We've been through this, Ron. It's not exactly convenient for me to commute between here and the school everyday." She paused. "We could always move to Hogsmeade." "What about the house?" Ron demanded. "We can't just leave here!" "You just don't want to leave Ginny and Seamus alone, do you?" Lavender asked. "That too," Ron agreed, albeit reluctantly. The clock in the kitchen struck twelve, long chimes. "I'd better go," said Lavender. "We've got a staff meeting at one." She kissed him gently. "I'll see you next weekend," she promised. "Bye, Lav," said Ron quietly as she collected her bags. She smiled broadly and Disapparated with a 'pop'. Ron frowned. This was the worst part of the week - the longest time before he would see Lavender again. Padma groaned - the lemonade was everywhere. Her and Draco's newly acquired cat had decided to jump onto the table where she was busy planning the wedding, knocking her drink everywhere. All of the magazines and the revised guest list were now covered in the sticky substance. After putting the black cat on the floor, she performed a spell to clean it up. However, all of the pieces of parchment now smelt strongly of lemonade. 'Planning a wedding is harder than I thought,' decided Padma, looking at all the plans they had made so far. After much deliberation, a date for the wedding had finally been set: the 20th of May. Padma had already chosen her dress (dresses in a Muggle style were currently popular, and hers was no exception. It was a very plain off the shoulder dress in an off-white colour and a very small amount of embroidery around the bottom), and the bridesmaid dresses, which were very similar to her own, though in a deep red. Her bridesmaids were to be Mandy Brocklehurst and Lisa Turpin. Hermione had declined her invitation as she would be seven months pregnant at the time. Parvati was to be her Maid of Honour. As much as Padma pressured him, Draco was yet to find a Best Man. She was insistent that he find one soon as robes would have to be made, etc. 'I think Harry and Hermione had the right idea,' thought Padma, checking over the guest list. The list was... impressive. It read like the invitation list to one of Harry and Hermione's parties: a guide to who's who in the Wizarding world. There were Quidditch players, aristocrats, authors, actors, models (Draco had recently started doing some modelling) and various other celebrities and people they knew. The previous week they had managed to cut the list down to two hundred and fifty. Then Draco realised he had forgotten a whole branch of his family tree and they were now closer to four hundred. "How are things going?" asked Draco, who was standing in the doorway. "Fine," sighed Padma. She had to looked twice at him. "Are you wearing my Quidditch robes?" Draco grinned at her. "I thought they'd suit me better," he declared, modelling them for her. Her England robes were certainly a contrast against his pale complexion. "I think they look better on me," Padma told him, moving away from the table and standing in front of Draco. "I'd prefer it if you weren't wearing them." "And what would you rather have me wearing?" Padma grinned devilishly. "Well, you remember that photo shoot you did last week.." Draco did remember, and he raised an eyebrow in surprise. It had been an advertisement for a famous Wizarding underwear company. "Your wish is my command," he said, pulling off the robes. "Wake up, gorgeous," Harry whispered. Hermione stirred and opened her eyes. "What time is it?" "Just after nine," Harry informed her. "The Daily Prophet have sent you an assignment." Hermione sat up. "Why didn't you wake me sooner?" she demanded. "Because it's only just come," Harry told her. At this she visibly relaxed. "Oh." She pulled on her dressing gown, which was hanging by the bed. "Did you read it?" she asked. Harry nodded, producing the letter which was written on a piece of heavy parchment. "You have to interview the new Muggle Liaison Officer at the Ministry. Apparently he's the youngest ever." Hermione almost the dropped the back skirt she had pulled out of the wardrobe. "What?" she managed to say. "The Muggle Liaison Officer." Harry nodded, confused by Hermione's shock. "What is it?" he asked, concerned. 'I wish she's tell me what the problem is,' Harry thought. 'I hate seeing her like this.' "Harry, do you know who the Muggle Liaison Officer is?" she asked. Harry shook his head. He didn't really follow things at the Ministry of Magic unless they affected him. "Who?" "Justin Finch-Fletchley." For a moment, Harry wasn't quite sure about the significance of this, but then the penny dropped. Justin had been at Hogwarts with them, and had been a member of Hufflepuff house. He had had quite an infatuation with Hermione in their last couple of years at Hogwarts, to the extent that he tracked down her Muggle telephone number and repeatedly called her. There's no way I can interview him," Hermione said, throwing the skirt onto the bed and rummaging around in the wardrobe for a blouse that would fit over her expanded stomach and wouldn't gape at the chest. "Hermione, he's not going to start hitting on you," Harry reassured her. "You're married, not to mention pregnant." Hermione gave him a scathing look. "He was still hitting on me just before we left Hogwarts. And I was with you!" Harry remembered that now she mentioned it. Hermione took a deep breath. "I guess I'll just have to grin and bear it," she decided. "That's the Gryffindor spirit," said Harry with a grin, although Hermione didn't look as determined as her words sounded. A/N: I hope you enjoyed it! Please review - I enjoy your feedback. Here's a thanks section for Chapter Fifteen:
Review, Flame, Whatever. silverphoenix |
Happily Ever After?
By: silvernatasha
***COMPLETED*** The sequel to 'So What Now?'. After seven years at Hogwarts the gang are ready for the real world, but is the real world ready for them?
Rated: Fiction K+ - English - Romance/Humor - Harry P., Hermione G. - Chapters: 21 - Words: 50,369 - Reviews: 458 - Favs: 74 - Follows: 9 - Updated: Oct 31, 2002 - Published: Mar 20, 2002 - Status: Complete - id: 669417
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Full 3/4 1/2 Expand Tighten
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