A/N - A few people mentioned not receiving alerts for the last few chapters of Unexpected Twists, so I thought I would mention the new thing fanfiction seems to be doing. Last week when I went to sort one of my chapters I noticed a note at the top of the page, saying that E-Mail alerts now need to be enabled in account settings, and since they're automatically set to off, I had to switch them on again, so maybe that could be the answer for the people who are struggling with their alerts. I hope that helps, and I hope you all enjoy this After The End piece.


Unexpected Twists.

Being careful not to spill the tray of drinks he was carrying, Harry Potter returned to the corner where he was enjoying a drink with several friends. The drinks were a regular occurrence and included both a selection of Gryffindors and Slytherins. Although to be honest, even though he'd been back home a year and part of things for that time, there were still moments when he felt as though he didn't quite belong. It was as if the five years he'd been away had changed things, and try as he might, he just couldn't quite fit into the dynamics of the group. Or maybe, it was simply because his relationship with Ron had changed, and he was no longer the best friend Ron had ever had.

Although if Harry was being honest with himself, he would admit that the life he had now was not the one he'd expected when he and Ginny had chosen to return home a year ago. Given the disaster they'd made of their return, he and Ginny had actually discussed packing up and leaving for a second time, but ultimately they'd decided to stick around. The first thing Harry did was sort a job, and after having a second meeting with Kingsley, he decided not to return to Auror training and to instead enter training to become an M.L.E Officer.

That training only took six months, and even though he was still in his first years probation, Harry was confident he would be sticking with the job. While it wasn't quite as exciting as Auror work, Harry found his job pretty fulfilling and he knew if he played his cards right, he could have a bright future in the department. To be honest the only downside was the fact he sometimes had to work alongside the Aurors, and when those Aurors happened to be Ron and Draco, he not only got to see first-hand just how close the pair were, but what he'd missed out on by running away all those years ago. But still, it was one little cloud in his working life.

Although his personal life wasn't always the easiest either, and one year on, things were still strained between himself and Ginny and Bill and Fleur. While the rest of the family had slowly come around and the dramas surrounding their return were rarely mentioned, things had just never been the same with Bill and Fleur. Even though the couple claimed to have forgiven them and moved on, it was obvious they still didn't trust them and when an argument did break out, they weren't above throwing Ginny's actions in their faces.

The other area of their life that also hadn't gone as planned was in regard to their son, James, who was now a few months old. He and Ginny had returned so that their child would have their family around them, which he did, but also so that Ginny could get some help from her mother with childcare. While Molly was always on hand with advice, and was happy to look after her grandson, she wasn't quite as available as Ginny had hoped she would be. To be honest, Harry suspected Ginny thought she would be able to dump the baby on her mother at the drop of a hat when she wanted some alone time, but Molly wasn't having any of that. While she was happy to look after any of her grandchildren, it was only when she was needed. She downright refused to look after any of her grandchildren if their parents simply wanted to take it easy and relax without having to look after a child. Of course it was a different matter if she offered to babysit when she felt people needed a rest, but she certainly wasn't going to be taken advantage of and used as a free babysitting service. As such, Ginny was a more hands on mother than she'd bargained for, and Harry knew that at times she struggled and missed the freedom she had before she became a mother.

"I've finally made a decision," Ron suddenly announced, dragging Harry from his thoughts. "As you all know, I'm getting married in six months' time."

"How would we possibly have known that?" Blaise Zabini joked. "Neither you nor Pansy have uttered one word about the wedding."

In actual fact, both Ron and Pansy spoke about the wedding all the time, and it was a running joke that Pansy especially wouldn't know how to have a conversation that didn't feature some mention of the upcoming wedding. However, everyone knew it was simply because they were both so excited to be getting married and starting a life together.

"I've decided on who will be my best man," Ron continued, ignoring Blaise's comments.

"As if that involved any decision," George Weasley, Ron's older brother, chuckled, as Harry sat up straighter and paid more attention to what was happening.

"It did actually, and you George were in the running," Ron informed his brother.

"I was?" George questioned, looking genuinely shocked.

"You were," Ron confirmed with a nod. "Obviously I have brothers, so I had to consider them all. And while I love Bill and Charlie, they're both so much older than me and I feel as if they don't know me as well as you do. And well, Percy has never really taken much interest in me. But you and Fred, always included me and Ginny when we were younger, and even now, you're the brother I'm closest to. So yes, George, I considered you."

"Only considered though," Theo Nott laughed, nudging George in the ribs. "I think this is the brush off coming, mate."

"Yeah, it is I'm afraid," Ron admitted with a shrug. "You would have made a good best man, George, but I went with a friend in the end. Although even then, I did consider a few people. Neville, who has always been a solid friend," he said, smiling at Neville, who raised his glass in a silent toast. "And of course there's Harry."

At the mention of his name, Harry allowed himself to get his hopes up. To be honest he'd always assumed that when the time came, he would be Ron's best man. After all, they'd been friends since they were eleven years old and they'd been through so much together. It was true, their recent experiences had changed things, but surely it didn't change the fact that they were best friends and were destined to stand by each other on the most important day of their lives.

"At one time it would have been a no-brainer," Ron continued, his eyes locked on Harry's. "I wouldn't have even had to think about it. You would have been it, Harry. But things change, and I think we're both mature enough to admit that our friendship is not the same as it once was. You were still a strong contender though. I just want you to know that I did consider asking you, Harry. But ultimately I want to ask someone I never thought I would even be friends with, let alone close enough for him to be standing by my side as I marry the witch of my dreams. I think you can all guess who that person is."

"We guessed before you even began to get all soppy," George laughed. "Come on Draco, say yes and put us all out of our misery."

"No-one's asked me anything yet," Draco Malfoy replied with a cheeky smirk.

"You know what I'm asking," Ron said with a roll of his eyes. "Will you be my best man?"

"Of course I will," Draco answered with a genuine smile. "It will be an honour."

As Harry watched everyone toast the good news, he couldn't help but feel as if he were out of the loop. Despite Ron's words, he had to wonder if he had truly been considered as Best Man. After all, as Ron himself had said, things had changed, and not just between the two of them. There was the added complication of Ron's friendship with Draco. Although the more Harry thought about it, the more he thought he should have been expecting things to turn out this way. Not only were Ron and Draco work colleagues, but they were friends, and Ron was godfather to Draco and Hermione's son, Scorpius.

For the rest of the evening, Harry managed to hide his disappointment, although he used the excuse of getting back to his son to leave early and return home to Ginny. Not that he could hide his disappointment from Ginny, and he admitted how hurt he felt to be passed over as Ron's best man.


After mulling over what Harry had told her all night, Ginny awoke early and leaving Harry to look after their son, she set off to visit her brother. It was only when she arrived at the house Ron shared with Pansy that it occurred to her that it was still early, and Ron and Pansy might not be up. However, luck was on her side and both her brother and future sister-in-law were up and having breakfast when she knocked on their door.

"What can we do for you this early, Gin?" Ron asked, leading his sister into the kitchen, where he'd been eating with his fiancée.

"I just came to talk about Harry," Ginny said, refusing Pansy's offer of anything to eat or drink.

"What about Harry?" Ron asked with a concerned frown. "He's not sick, is he?"

"No, he's just a bit upset about last night," Ginny admitted.

"What happened last night?" Pansy asked.

"Nothing," Ron answered with a hapless shrug. "Or at least nothing that I can remember."

"You didn't ask him to be Best Man," Ginny reminded her brother.

"Come on, he can't have been surprised by that," Pansy snorted.

"Is it so unreasonable to expect your best friend, someone who is virtually like a brother to you, to ask you to be his best man?" Ginny snapped. "Don't forget you are family, Ron. Harry and I will also be getting married in the near future."

"I am well aware that we are family, and that our friendship is a special one," Ron replied calmly, even though he was slightly annoyed that yet again Ginny was showing a side of her he didn't like. "But at the end of the day, I had to choose one person to stand with me. One person to support me as I married, Pansy. And aside from Hermione, whom I would have had as my best woman in a flash if Pansy hadn't already earmarked her as a bridesmaid, Draco was the obvious choice. Not just as my friend, but as Pansy's."

"So you've only asked him because he's friends with Pansy?" Ginny checked, looking much happier about the idea of Harry being passed over simply because of Draco's longstanding friendship with the bride.

"That was a reason, but only one of them. Mainly I asked him because at this moment in time, he is the best friend I have," Ron explained. "And I wouldn't be where I am today if it wasn't for him."

"What do you mean? Did he set you and Pansy up?" Ginny asked.

"Not really," Ron answered. "But I doubt we ever would have gotten to know one another if I hadn't gotten friendly with Draco during Auror training. But I was referring to what he did for me during training."

"What did he do?"

"He was the reason I passed my Potions exam," Ron explained. "After you and Harry left, I very nearly gave in and quit training. Hermione had offered to help me study, but I didn't really think that would end very well. Then Draco offered to help me. We studied together and he gave me enough confidence to pass the test. Without his help, I might very well have been the loser you thought I was when you returned last year. But instead, thanks to Draco, I managed to carry on with my Auror training. So that is why he's my Best Man. And quite frankly, if Harry is upset that he's not it, he's only got himself to blame. He was the one who left for five years and didn't keep in touch. And let's not rake up the nasty mess you both made of things when you returned. It's been a year now, Gin, it's time you both accepted that life has moved on in your absence and things are not the same as they were when you left."

Thoroughly chastised, Ginny returned home to Harry and knowing that Ron would mention her visit, she had to come clean about where she'd been. Of course, Harry was not impressed by what she'd done, and reminded her that Ron was right, and they needed to accept how things were now. They'd been the ones to walk away for five years, and they'd been the ones to handle their return so badly. So of course things were going to be different, and they were just going to have to learn to live with the way things were and the way their lives had turned out.