James and Lily watched as the unconsumed food disappeared from the table as the feast ended. Dumbledore stood to make the last announcements for the night, "We would all like to extend a special welcome and gratitude to Harry and Hermione Potter, this certainly was an unexpected surprise, for those old enough to remember, Harry and Hermione Potter fought and won the Great Second War of Shadow, against the Shadows. All those lucky enough to learn from these extraordinary teachers should feel privileged…"
Dumbledore stopped as Harry glanced at him looking quite embarrassed but very pleased at his compliment, "So, if you'll follow your respective Prefect; they will lead you to your House dormitories." Harry looked impressed; Dumbledore had finished eloquently despite the circumstances.
"Come on Bal… Harry," said Hermione pulling him towards Dumbledore's office, "Let's hurry up, I want to go to bed early, you know how it is." Harry sighed, he wasn't going to enjoy this, and he knew they would have questions he couldn't answer. He knew the first question would be how he came back, that was far too complex to explain to them. Hermione had somewhat been involved, but it had been subconscious; although, she had understood it because of their connection, which had deepened during it. Unfortunately, most of the knowledge that was required to understand what had happened either came from Ascension, as well as, both the Wizarding World and muggle world; few knew both of those worlds, much less did anyone understand Ascension.
Hermione spoke in the Ancient tongue, "Netu ton.(Open up)" The Gargoyle sprung aside quickly; even though Hermione hadn't spoken the actual password.
"Herm, you realize…" Harry stopped mid-sentence at the scene before him; Mr. Weasley, who had gone gray; Ron, who had shown up and Dumbledore but Harry noted with great displeasure, Draco Malfoy was also in the room. All three of the afore mentioned were looking at Malfoy with the same look of displeasure, if not downright hatred, that Harry and Hermione had.
"Malfoy?" snapped Harry, "What are you doing here?"
"You aren't the only one with children attending Hogwarts, or did you think they only kept it open for you?" drawled Malfoy.
"If someone was stupid enough to marry you… they must have been desperate," commented Hermione snappishly with great disapproval.
"Millicent wasn't desperate," Malfoy started to snap.
"Millicent Bulstrode?" asked a shocked Harry, "You're right Malfoy, she wasn't desperate…. YOU were!" Hermione ribbed Harry.
Malfoy turned an angry red, "If that's all Headmaster," he said gritting his teeth, "We'll finish talking about Carl and Fletcher later."
"Yes, please go, Harry and I have much to discuss," replied Dumbledore.
Malfoy suddenly looked interested, "Why?" he asked. Harry looked at him funny, "Because, I supposedly died 13 years ago," he answered, "Where have you been?"
"I was transferred to Drumstrang for the last year after you threatened me," replied Malfoy, "Too bad, you should have stayed dead; I liked you better that way."
Harry shrugged, "Glad to disappoint you," he said.
"Oh yes, now I remember, the mudblood went nuts…" Malfoy couldn't even finish as Harry had thrown him against a wall and knocked the air out of him.
Harry kept his hand up looking livid and said slowly so Malfoy's slow brain could understand him, "NEVER… insult… my… wife, GET IT?!" he snapped. Dumbledore watched the exchange quietly, he didn't like Malfoy either, but he couldn't let this continue.
"Yes," Malfoy finally managed to wheeze.
Harry dropped his hand and Malfoy with it, "Good," he replied, "Now, get OUT."
"I'll get you one day Potter, ONE DAY!" Malfoy yelled over his shoulder on his way out. "Yeah, well get in line with the other 50 million who want to 'get me' Malfoy, must I remind you of your father, Voldemort and Ahriman? They all said that, they all failed," Harry called after him.
Hermione hugged him, "Thanks," she said quietly.
"Thank you," replied Harry returning her embrace, "You gave me a reason to fight… to live."
Hermione smiled at him lovingly as their foreheads touched, then Dumbledore interrupted their private moment by clearing his throat and saying, "So, tell us, how did you survive?"
Harry sighed, then he remembered, "Oh yes," he said quietly.
A beautiful song rang throughout the office as flames appeared in midair, "I believe you would like Fawkes back, he stayed with us for the past 13 years," commented Harry trying to avoid answering Dumbledore's question. Dumbledore merely stared at Harry, waiting for an answer to the question that Harry didn't want to answer.
Harry sighed again, "I'm sorry, I can't say," he finally answered.
This was followed by three immediate and angry protests; Harry raised his hand to silence them, "What happened is something too hard to explain," he said ignoring the new outburst of protests continued, "It has to do with things that can only be understood and achieved in Ascension and death. Neither subject can I possibly explain."
Dumbledore responded with a surprising calm, "Harry, you have truly gone where no one has gone before, you must tell us."
Harry shook his head, "How Professor Dumbledore? Hermione only understood it because of our special connection; otherwise, she wouldn't have," he said in almost a whisper, everyone except Hermione leaned in closer, hanging on every word he uttered, "For goodness sakes, will you guys stop that?! I'm not wise, I only understand what I went through because I lived it, any words I come up to describe it would confuse me, let alone you."
Hermione spoke up, "Think of nothing; feel nothing, taste nothing, no stimuli, just nothing, imagine that and that is what Harry went through," she said quietly.
"How did you escape?" asked Dumbledore after a few seconds.
"More connects Hermione and I than just telepathy," Harry answered, "That is all I can tell you about that."
"Where did you come up with the names Frey and Balder?" asked Mr. Weasley. Hermione started giggling uncontrollably, "That is Harry's sense of humor at work," she managed to get out before dissolving into giggles again.
Harry smiled at her, "It's a joke between me and Hermione," he answered, "Frey is short for Freya; and she was the Norse goddess of fertility and war; since we had so many kids and fought the Shadows, I thought it a good name. Hermione thought it extremely entertaining… after the first week."
"What about Balder?" Ron asked as he watched Hermione dissolve into another fit of giggles.
"Balder is also called the 'Ever-Dying god'," replied Harry as he watched a giggling Hermione, "I thought it fit my description… well the ever dying bit anyway."
Dumbledore smiled, "Nice job, but how did you get the N.E.W.T scores under those names?" he asked.
Harry gave Dumbledore a wiry smile, "My ways," he answered, "Other than that, I can't tell you; you could get in serious trouble if you don't inform the Ministry."
"That's nothing new," replied Dumbledore, "In fact, here he comes."
The door slammed open in a flash and the door flew off its hinges as it hit the wall, "Can I help you Minister?" asked Harry coldly.
"HOW DARE YOU INTERFERE WITH AUROR BUSINESS, YOU ARE A VIGILANTE!" roared Minister Amilstua.
Harry raised an eyebrow and looked at Dumbledore, "They looked like help was welcome," said Harry calmly to clearly enraged Minister, "Only three weren't Kissed and that is because I 'interfered'; otherwise they would have all been Kissed and then I would have had to destroy all six Dementors anyway." If Harry thought this cool and logical answer would calm the Minister, he was dead wrong.
"YOU THINK BECAUSE YOU ARE HARRY POTTER, YOU CAN GET AWAY WITH ANYTHING!" the Minister roared back at Harry. Harry started to massage his head; this little 4' 2'' Minister had one loud voice.
Harry waited a moment to avoid yelling back, or worse… curse the Minister, "No, I just do what must be done in order to save lives; preferably everyone involved," Harry replied in a forced calm, he really disliked this Minister; whoever voted for him was just as crazy or more so than Minister Amilstua. The Minister huffed and puffed from all his yelling but couldn't think of a good nasty reply and stalked off angrily. Harry raised his hand and motioned at the door; it quickly repaired itself and shut.
"Now, Ron, how did you know?" Harry asked.
Ron smiled, "Well; our entire family visits mum's grave at the same time every year except me, I visit every day, none of the others can stand it without breaking out into tears… But yet, every year without fail there were fresh flowers on her grave when all of us came to visit, I knew they were fresh because I visited the night before, so it couldn't be one of us, because they would have waited until the next day; Dumbledore hadn't done it, so, I had my suspicions… but it remained a mystery to me. Then Dumbledore told me about Lily and James Potter coming to Hogwarts; think of it, Lily and James Potter, not James Potter and Lily Evans, then it all made sense, I was the only one to hold out hope you and Hermione had both somehow survived. Thus, was the only one that made the connection, or even thought it a possibility," he answered.
"You're right; I did visit Mrs. Weasley's grave every year and left flowers," commented Harry looking impressed, "But how did you know it was us?"
"I looked for a birth certificate," replied Ron with a wiry smile, "You didn't do a thorough job, I expected better of you Harry."
Harry and Hermione both laughed, "Good job Ron, I figured no one would check to see if I had been born," he said with a smile.
Ron turned slightly red in embarrassment at the compliment, "Thanks Harry, it wasn't hard, it's just no one else thought of the possibility," replied Ron; who, although embarrassed, was pleased, "But why didn't you come back after… whatever occurred?"
Harry frowned slightly, "I didn't want to face any more Dark Lords… at least, until my kids were grown, maybe not even after that… but most importantly, I will not leave them fatherless, or worse, parentless, and even then, I have grown tired of fighting… of constant, unending war…" he responded.
Dumbledore nodded, "Understandable," he said quietly, "That you didn't want them to grow up without you and Hermione, just as you had been forced to grow up without parents."
Harry smiled slightly, "Thank you for understanding my position Dumbledore. To be honest; if this new Dark Lord had not become such a threat, I would not have returned at all… unfortunately, he attacked a muggle store where Lily and James were shopping for Hermione," he commented, "They managed to escape, but only just, even with the Ministry Aurors attempting to drive the Dementors away. At that point; I had to return, he must be stopped."
Harry paused, then started to look angry, "I don't want to be a hero, I just want to be a good father to my children and a good husband to Hermione, that is hero enough for me; yet, no one else will face him; so if I don't, evil will run rampant as people hide in fear of their lives… Where has people's courage gone? We no longer stand firm as one; we are weak and divided, squabbling over foolish things and cowering in fear of one evil wizard," he angrily commented, he got up and started pacing, "All I want is to be a good father and husband, not babysit the Wizarding World for the rest of my life, much less pass it down to my children; it is not our responsibility to protect you. That is why the Minister really irritates me; he makes it seem as though I enjoy intervening; I DON'T, maybe if he were bright enough to control what is left of evil, I wouldn't have to." Everyone sat in stunned silence; only Hermione knew he had felt like that, but even she hadn't expected him to admit it to everyone. She immediately put a hand on his shoulder, Harry turned around and looked her in the eye; very quickly his demeanor changed and he looked much calmer.
Dumbledore recovered fairly quickly, "I'm sorry you have this burden Harry; I know you didn't ask for it, but sometimes in life we must handle burdens not meant for us," he replied, "I told you this many years ago; it is as true now as it was then."
Harry stopped and turned to Dumbledore, "Yes; I know, must I remind you again? Voldemort, Ahriman and all Shadows were seeking my destruction; this is nothing new for me, but it is for my kids, I don't want them to end up hurt in any way. Although, Lily and James can definitely handle themselves, I'm not sure of the younger ones," he said with a slight smile, "We haven't trained them enough… yet."
Dumbledore look curious, "Trained them enough yet?" he asked.
Harry looked amused, "Well, how could I not return and send my kids to Hogwarts?" replied Harry.
"I don't know," answered Dumbledore, "How?"
"We've been training them at home since they were 1 year olds," replied Harry.
"How? It's not like they can understand you," commented Ron.
Harry smiled, "Verbally isn't the only way to teach," he answered, "There are… other methods."
"What other methods are there?" asked Mr. Weasley.
Harry glanced at Hermione quickly, smile gone, she answered, "They are methods we cannot… discuss… at the present time," she said.
Harry smiled, 'Thanks,' he thought quietly.
'You're welcome,' replied Hermione. Harry was in awe to have married such a remarkable and wonderful wife.
"Is that enough for tonight?" Hermione asked.
"Dumbledore smiled and nodded, he stood as Harry helped Hermione up and opened the door for her, "Good night Harry and Hermione," said Dumbledore with a slight bow, "We are so pleased to have you two back; it hasn't been the same without you."
Harry nodded, "Thank you Headmaster, we appreciate it," came his reply.
"Harry," came Hermione's tired voice, "We have one more girl and two boys…" Harry smiled quietly as he held his new sons; he handed them to Hermione and picked up his new daughter.
"No mythological names!" Hermione shot at Harry.
"Yes… Freya," replied Harry in a teasing voice, "How about…Mayim, Govad and Joash?"
Hermione growled at him, "Now, seriously, what would you like to name them?" she asked.
Harry paused a moment, "How about; May… Jarod… and Evan?"
Harry concentrated for a few seconds; Hermione groaned slightly as she got up, "That is painful; although, I hope this isn't the last of our 'House'," she smiled.
"As long as you're up to it," replied Harry hugging her.
"Oh yeah, you'd better believe it," Hermione said lightly as Harry sat down. Hermione plopped into his lap completely exhausted.
"It's nice you have the ability to heal people quickly, real handy," commented Hermione.
"Yes, it does have its advantages," replied Harry as he hugged her tightly, "Especially, when it's you hurting."
"Ahh, all our kids were more than worth it to me," said Hermione, "Mum was really pleased when we surpassed the famous Mrs. Weasley."
Harry and Hermione laughed, "Yeah; I know, but either way, I am thrilled just to have you and our current 'House'," he replied with a kiss, "Why don't you take a nap? I'll have the girls watch them."
Hermione quickly nodded, "Sure; they'll love to," she commented with a smile.
Harry smiled back at her as he picked up the sleeping trio, "The boys won't be as thrilled," he laughed, "But too bad for them!"
Harry headed for the door, but before he got there, the door burst open and ALL 9 of their girls rushed in, "How's mum?" they all asked in unison.
"Shh, mum is trying to sleep; you guys want to watch over our new little trio?" asked Harry.
Harry heard the boys outside groan, but all the girls giggled, "Sure!" said Jess with enthusiasm. Harry noticed as the girls all rushed off with their new brothers and sister, one had a birthmark, for some strange reason he seemed to recognize it from somewhere, but he couldn't get a clear picture. Harry shook it off and smiled at the sight of his softly sleeping wife. He gently closed the door behind him as he headed for the Room of Requirement.
Harry stood motionless; Prabhaker wrapped around his arm tightly, a Dementor approached him while sucking in something invisible; happiness, hope. Harry watched the Dementor closely, waiting for his chance to strike, these new Dementors were different from the old, they had no goodness in them; these were pure evil. The only thing Harry could do for them was destroy them, there was nothing to release, Harry knew this would be a constant battle until he caught Malitus. He also knew that Malitus must be a powerful wizard, because he had to create these Dementors; this many had not existed before Ahriman and Michael had both been destroyed. Harry was curious about these Dementors, how had Malitus created them? Or come up with them in the first place. This had confused Harry; Michael had created the Farrak, which Harry now knew was a hybrid of Ancient words that combined to form their name 'Children of Light', the Shadow had merely defeated the Farrak and remade them in his 'image' of what he thought they should be. Michael had been the only one Harry knew of to make a conscious thinking being out of nothing. Harry doubted Malitus had come up with it… at least on his own. Harry saw his chance and swung.
The room's lighting and temperature went back to normal, "Nice overhead swing," said a wonderful, tired, yet, happy voice.
Harry swung around and enveloped Hermione in a hug," Feeling better?" he asked with evident concern.
"I'm fine Harry! You should always be so cuddly; whenever I have a kid, you always get this way," Hermione teased slyly, "You should know by now I love it when you get like this… How about you keep it up when I don't have a kid to deliver?"
Harry gave her a shy slightly embarrassed smile, "I know…" he replied, "You should know by now how much I love to cuddle… with you."
Hermione gave a muffled giggle as Harry kissed her, "How was your nap?" asked Harry as they parted.
"It could have been a lot better…" Hermione trailed off.
Harry smiled, "I know you feel more secure if I'm there… but there are some other stuff that has to be done," Harry finished by sticking out his tongue, "I'd rather spend it with you… I don't want to fight this war… our time is far past."
"I know Harry," replied Hermione as she hugged him tightly, "But don't worry, we'll manage as long as we have each other and our children."
Harry smiled down into her brown hair, "I know… but it's not what I want for us, this life is too dangerous for our kids yet, if they ever have to live it, it is beyond our control, but I do want to delay it as long as possible and right now it doesn't seem possible," answered Harry quietly.
"You don't have to protect our kids that much, they can handle themselves you know," commented Hermione.
"Really? Surprising coming from the one that wouldn't let Sam and Linda go off on their own…" Harry teased.
Hermione's demeanor immediately changed, "That's different," she almost snapped at him.
Harry flinched, "Just teasing Herm, I didn't mean it any other way," he said quickly.
"Hmm," came her skeptic response, "Where our kids are concerned, don't tease me."
"Okay," replied Harry hugging her, "I won't tease you about it again."
Hermione 'hummed' at him and gave him a demeaning look before settling her head against his chest, "Okay, you got away with it… this time," she teased back, "But, just barely."
Harry smiled at her teasing him and slid his arms around her, "You realize we have classes tomorrow?" he asked.
"Yes," replied Hermione as she yawned, "I think it's bed time…"
"Yes… midnight is starting to get a little late," replied Harry with a smile.
Hermione rolled her eyes and looked up at him, "Just maybe," she commented.
James sat as Lily was playing with their new brothers and sister, "Why do you guys love to take care of babies?" he asked in a curious tone.
"I have no idea, just do," replied Lily with a smile at her twin brother, "Babies are such a wonder; so curious all the time, they wonder about everything we take for granted."
"That they are," said Jay as he watched his now two hour old brother get up and start walking, "They certainly learn fast." Lily looked up at her twin brother.
"I think our kids learn faster than… average," she commented. James watched open mouthed, absolutely stunned as Evan set the carpet on fire and giggled; Lily waved a hand absentmindedly at the fire behind her and it slowly died.
"What do you think we did as kids?" asked Jay.
"Do you really want to know?" answered Lily, "We were worse."
Jay snorted with laughter, "Worse?" he shot at his twin sister, "How could we have been worse?"
"OH, well, at one hour old… you had a temper tantrum and nearly leveled half a block to a block in the financial district," replied Lily carelessly as though babies attempted to level blocks full of buildings and bankrupt England everyday.
James rolled his eyes, "Come on, I was one hour old, what can you expect?" he asked his twin sister as he watched Evan renew his attempts to burn down Hogwarts again, "They certainly have a lot of energy; don't they?"
"Yes, that they definitely do," answered Lily as she yawned, "I'm already tired; yet, they keep going and going and going."
"You want some of these?" Jay asked sounding astounded as he managed to catch his brother's eye and locked him in a penetrating gaze. "Don't do that," he said slowly. His brother dropped his pyromanical attempt and started searching for something else to amuse him. "Looks like they got dad's mischief… Just wait until they are two months old!" groaned Jay.
Lily giggled, "Yeah, they just may surpass you!" she joked.
James rolled his eyes, "If that happens… there goes Hogwarts!" he replied jokingly.
"Not if they get your brains too!" Lily giggled.
James attempted to look affronted, "Well, gee, thanks Lil!" he rolled his eyes again, "At least my heart is in the right place!"
"I know; remember what you did when that Auror tried to stun me?" she asked sweetly.
Jay turned slightly red, "Perhaps I did get a little carried away," he replied.
Lily laughed, "No, you didn't, I really appreciate it," she said as she hugged her brother, "We're just lucky mum and dad didn't see it; that would have been a little blatant."
"I know Lil, but when someone attempts to harm my twin, sisters or mother, I get very protective," replied Jay.
Lily laughed again, "Yes, you do, but that's a good thing… as far as I'm concerned anyway," she paused and gave him a mischievous smile, "That's what I'll tell your girlfriend in a few years."
James rolled his eyes, "Yeaahh," came his response. His twin sister loved to tease him about girls… even though that was a long way off.
"That boy with blond hair was kind of cute," commented Lily, "What was his name?"
James' head snapped up from watching his little brother Jarod, "OOOHHHH NO!" he snapped, "Don't even think about it; dad told us the Malfoys were dark, if one… got our power…" he paused, "Lily, you demolished your room because of a nightmare. That plus you didn't demolish it with normal power… you destroyed it with tidal waves rippling in the very fabric of space and time… your power in the hands of Darkness…?" Jay shuttered.
"You know, Jay and Lily aren't telling us everything," commented Hermione.
"Yes, I know… They think they are so clever, hiding it from us… but don't worry about it, if they think they have to hide from us, then the Ministry won't find out," replied Harry, "Remember the 'room' incident when Lily destroyed her room?" asked Harry, "They actually thought they had gotten away with it, and when James defended Lily when that Auror attempted to stun her."
Hermione smiled, she and Harry had trained their boys' right… "I was out for that one; what happened?" she asked.
Harry smiled and looked on the edge of laughter at the memory, "A semi-conscious Auror, obviously, attempted to stun Lily for some odd reason… no idea why, but anyway James stopped it in mid-air and it disappeared."
"Nice, but you can do that too," commented Hermione unconcerned.
"But that's not even the best part," replied Harry, "The best part was …"
After Harry related his tale, Hermione looked shocked, "Is that why you thought it was funny when the Minister threatened to take our kids?" she asked.
"Yeah, that's why, I think it's ludicrous, you know Jay will protect Lily and his other younger siblings; so I'm not worried! Besides, other protections, for example, I would feel sorry for anyone that crosses Fawkes, he loves the kids," Harry answered.
Hermione sat next to him and smiled both playfully and slyly, "Those are some kids we have Harry," Hermione commented.
Her smile growing a little wider as she though of a way to tease him, "I wonder…" Hermione started looking very serious, "Where does it come from?" she paused as though considering it, "Well, one thing is for certain."
Harry looked at her curiously, "What?" he asked.
Hermione gave him a grave look and didn't answer right away, "They didn't get it from you," she replied.
Harry immediately looked and felt hurt before Hermione dissolved into giggles "Well, gee, Thanks Herm; now I really feel special!" Harry commented.
"You should; I married you, didn't I?" Hermione managed to reply before dissolving into another bout of giggles.
Harry sighed heavily; there was a lot on his mind, Hermione stopped giggling and looked concerned, this wasn't the Harry she had married 10-11 years ago, or even from 1 year ago, this was the Harry from 14 years ago, this worried her, "I'm sorry Harry; I meant it playfully," she said looking immediately sorrowful. She slid over and hugged him.
Harry smiled at her, "It's not that Herm; I just thought I had been able to give up this life, I don't want it!" he replied somewhat bitterly, "My feelings haven't changed; all I want is a quiet life with you and our kids."
Hermione sighed as she hugged him tighter, "I know Harry, but sometimes our path isn't always what we want," she said quietly, "Perhaps we will have more playful years away from this soon." Harry smiled at her and pulled her onto his lap, "I hope so… but now they know I'm alive; they'll expect me to baby sit them. If I don't, they'll hunt me down every time they want help. That's why I didn't want to go back, to let them know I'm alive; I just want to spend the rest of my life with you," he said quietly to her. Hermione sighed again and pulled him around her; they sat there for a few minutes in total silence. But it wasn't awkward; this was their way of communing with each other in an impossibly rare way.
Harry awoke to Hermione's usual good morning kiss, "Get up Harry, you have classes to teach…" she laughed slightly. Harry smiled, she knew him far too well. There was a knock on their door, "Who is it?" called Hermione as she glanced in the door's direction.
A small voice came back to answer her, "Can we come in?"
Hermione smiled slightly while cocking her head to the side and glanced at Harry while waiting for him to answer. Harry smiled back as he watched Hermione's hair drift slightly off to the side, and caress her shoulder before dramatically imitating Hermione's stance for a moment -- this drew the desired laugh to show she had found it entertaining. Harry smiled at her playful gaze before replying, "Yes you can!" he called. Their kids piled in and ran to hug their parents good morning.
Sam jumped into Hermione's arms as he asked, "Are you guys going to escort us to breakfast?"
Hermione smiled slightly at Harry who returned it with a playful one, "Sure," he replied. Hermione's and Harry instantly transformed their night clothes into teachers' robes. Hermione looked around at the past 11 years of her life. She gave a loving smile to each of her children, from the Bethany, the third oldest… older than Brent by a little less than an hour, to the youngest, Evan, who was about 5 minutes younger than Jake, "Let's go!" she said in an excited tone before glancing at her husband with a playful light that seemed to spread to all their children, Harry hadn't seen this look in a long time, since the time that he had handed Hermione their baby daughter, Lily.
Instead of heading for the Great Hall they headed outside, it was a beautiful day. Harry noticed how Hermione bent her head back slightly and smiled quietly as a light breeze played in her hair. It seemed to have been a long time since they had been able to enjoy such sweet times as they strolled down the hill, where they found James and Lily laughing and playing with each other in-between bites of something they couldn't quite make out. Lily motioned lightly for her parents and siblings to join them.
"Morning," said Lily brightly to her family, "Did you all have a restful night?"
"Extremely!" replied Hermione with a smile at Harry.
"Wonderfully," replied the rest excluding Harry, who was trying not to laugh bitterly.
Hermione gave him a worried look, he was barely eating at all; she realized that he was concerned because they had started a family on the hope neither of them would ever return to this insane world. Hermione delicately bent her head down so her soft brown hair covered her face and smiled slightly, she would have to distract him from his troubles. She hoped she could… 'After all', she thought as she lifted her head gently, peering at Harry through a slight gap in her light brown hair… she loosed a mischievous giggle, 'I haven't tried this before...'
After finishing their outside family time, they entered the Great Hall to join the rest of the school. Hermione and Harry sat at the Professors' table, while all but the two eldest of their 'brood' joined Hagrid's table off to the side. James and Lily joined the Gryffindor table; several of the girls in the same year glanced at Lily questioningly, several of the boys did the same to James; although, they both ignored it. Harry and Hermione started on a light breakfast; however, from Hermione's point of view, Harry still wasn't eating much, he was just poking at it; Hermione smiled mischievously as she bent her head slightly down so her light brown hair hid her face, she tried not to giggle, she knew what to do.
Harry felt a curious sensation running up and down his right leg; he glanced down inquisitively to find out what was going on. Then he glanced at Hermione, whose head was slightly to the left, her hair hanging down to cover her shoulder and part of her face. She winked mellifluously at him, Harry snorted with laughter at the playful twinkle in her eyes. Harry fought to keep control of his mind, but the playful twinkling look in her eyes melted his heart, he gave in with a slight fight as his heart started racing; no longer did he remember Dark Lords or their minions… they were unimportant now, all that mattered was her… her happiness, her joy, her love for him. His youthful looks returned to fill the spot that had been taken by so many adult worries and frets. But none of that matter now, the way her hair swung, and her smile as she quietly tilted her head the other way. Her smile extended upwards diminutively and that took up his entire mind; there was room for nothing else.
Dumbledore heard some of the Potter kids, especially the girls, giggling, snorting with suppressed laughter and snickering after the occasional glance at the Professors' table. Dumbledore wondered why; he looked around at the House tables and noticed a lot of the students; again, especially girls, glancing up at them, start giggling and whisper to their neighbor, who did the same. Dumbledore glanced at the rest of the teachers to see what was so funny; his eyes came to the end of the table on the right side of him and his question was unequivocally answered; even at his old age he realized in a moment that they, Harry and Hermione, were obviously flirting. Dumbledore chuckled lightly; he realized Hermione was attempting to get Harry's mind off things and release some pent up nervous energy. She was succeeding most splendidly in her charms; Dumbledore made a mental note to privately congratulate Hermione on her accomplishment, but to ask her to keep it lower key; they were… Dumbledore really started chuckling… putting all the students flirting to shame! Dumbledore felt Professor McGonagall searching the House tables; especially Gryffindor, with a penetrating gaze for the source of the 'disturbance'. Dumbledore attempted to keep his chuckling down when he knew she had found the 'source' of the disturbance from the disapproving tone of her 'tsking'. But by now Harry and Hermione were far too engrossed in their flirting to notice; which, Dumbledore knew, would stop if Harry would have noticed all the people watching them. Dumbledore, at least, found it amusing… if not downright comical to watch them. As did the majority of students; which Dumbledore took note did not include Draco Malfoy Jr., Carl Malfoy, Fletcher Malfoy and their friends; all of whom looked absolutely disgusted at the obvious display of affection between Harry and Hermione Potter. Dumbledore could have sworn Malfoy Jr. had uttered something close to 'mudblood filth' from his look and mouth movements.
James looked up to his sister, who was ribbing him frantically, "Look at mum and dad!" she whispered excitedly and started giggling.
James gave her a confused look and glanced up at their parents, "Yeah?" asked James, who by now was extremely confused.
"Look again!" replied his exasperated twin.
James looked up at his parents again and watched for a few seconds before looking at Lily, "Are they… no, they're not… flirting?" he exclaimed in a groan.
"Oh yeah, big time," replied Lily as she started to giggle, "This is the first time I've ever seen them flirt; they tease each other a lot, but this is flirting!"
James groaned as he nearly slapped his forehead in distaste at a thought that occurred to him, "I can hear all of Gryffindor now…" he commented.
Lily giggled again, and tilted her head slightly, an unwitting imitation of her mother, "All the girls will want mum to teach them now…" she started.
"And all the boys will want to know why our parents flirt," Jay finished, than imitated one of the boys "'Why do your parents flirt; aren't they married to each other?'"
Lily laughed at his imitation, "Well, I think it's cute, dad has had a lot on his mind; I think mum is trying to give him a little bit of reprieve," she commented.
"Yeah… at our expense," said Jay with a smile at his twin.
"Ah, so?" came Lily's reply, "Let dad and mum have some happiness!"
Jay smiled, "I know, don't worry," he said with a sigh, "I won't say anything; as long as they keep it down so that I don't get it from the other boys during class."