Brighter
"Did I show you the letter Al had sent?"
"I don't think so."
"Here."
Rich, male laughter. "He got put in Slytherin?"
A girlish giggle. "You ass. Don't say it like that."
"Say it like what?"
"Like you're about to shit the bed from laughter."
"I was going to warn you. Give you time to evacuate."
"I'll evacuate my foot into your ass."
"I'd prefer your hand. Ouch!"
"You deserved it."
"Did not."
"Did too. You ever get beat by a woman before?"
"Not without paying for it. Ouch!"
"I'll do it for free."
"You're so abusive."
"I love you too."
A kiss on the cheek with an audible smack.
Silence for a while.
"What's wrong, sweetie?"
"Nothing."
"You're crying."
"I'm sorry. I'm not sad. I don't look sad, do I?"
"No, you look relieved."
"I am."
"So am I."
Another kiss.
"You...don't hate my sister, do you?"
"No."
"And Ginny, you don't hate her either, right?"
"They aren't even dating anymore."
"I didn't ask that."
"It's been over 20 years since Ginny and I were together."
"I didn't ask that either."
"Okay. Fine. You win. No, I don't think I hate her."
"You don't think so?"
"I don't think so. I did say I would be her friend."
"Two decades later."
"Yup, exactly right. Except I won't lie to you. It wasn't time. They say it heals the wound, but with me and Ginny, that wasn't it."
"Then what was it?"
"It was you."
"That's sweet."
"No...it isn't."
"You're hurting my hand."
"Sorry."
"Why isn't it sweet?"
"Because it wasn't love for you that made me stop hating her."
"Then what was it?"
"It was winning."
"Winning what?"
"She left me and banged someone the very next day. And then she told me. I didn't know at the time that it was a woman. All I knew was that when I tried, she pushed me back. So the score was Ginny: 1; Me: 0."
"It's not a competition, sweetie."
"I tried dating after that. But I couldn't because Ginny and I were in the news. Women aren't interested in someone who throws a dark curse at their ex in anger."
"It was an accident."
"An accident. Yeah. But anyways, there was that, and there was me just not knowing how to do it. Dating always came easier to guys like Malfoy. But then you came along, and it was so easy talking to you. Maybe it was just because the law said we had to be together anyway. Or maybe because whoever assigned us actually knew it was he or she was doing. I don't know."
"Are you glad that you waited for me?"
"You sound a little afraid."
"Maybe I am."
"I wasn't waiting for you. I wasn't waiting for anyone. I was trying and failing. There's a difference."
"Okay."
"You're angry."
"I'm not angry."
"Don't be mad."
"I'm not mad."
"I've not given the full story."
"Then let me have it."
"I was trying and failing...and hated myself for it. I really did. I felt...like I was less of a man. But then I met you and it seemed like everything changed. My life did. My temper did. Everything seemed so much brighter. We got married and had kids and things got brighter still. I remembered when we first had our real talk, 20 years ago, in the kitchen. We were yelling and bitching at each other."
"Yes, we were."
"And I remembered thinking, how? How is it supposed to be her? How is she the one? Did you think that too?"
"A little bit. I had a crush on Henry Ichiro. He died in the Hogwarts battle. Do you remember him?"
"No. I'm sorry."
"That's fine, sweetie. I remember thinking Well, if it could be him, it wouldn't be too bad."
"No, I guess not."
"I had a crush on you at the time too."
"Did you?"
"Yup."
A kiss.
"We got to know each other. And you were so different. You were good but not just good. You were fiercely good."
A giggle.
"Don't laugh. I'm being serious."
"You're laughing too."
"I know. It's great. I spent time with you. We dueled a bit. We ate pizza. We dated. We had fun. And it's like the more time I spent with you, the more I got to know you, the more sense it made. Not just the Ministry's decision. It made sense for me to be with you. It made all the sense in the world. So I was okay. Everything in the past was just fine. Losing Cho Chang. Losing Ginny. Being a failure at every other dating attempt. Being a virgin until I met you. It was fine. It was all just fine...because I got to be with you."
A sniffle. "Thank you."
A kiss.
Silence for a while. Then:
"So, Al's a Slytherin. James is a Gryffindor and Delphi's a Hufflepuff. Do you want to shoot for a Ravenclaw? We'd get a medal for a kid in each house, I think."
"I'll shoot you."
Laughter.
"Do you want another kid, sweetie?"
"Hell no. I was just kidding."
More laughter.
"But it's nice, though; isn't it? Nobody can say we tried to section our kids into our own houses."
"According to Al, the Sorting Hat didn't hesitate at all."
"That's weird. I know he was worried about being sorted into my House."
"Yup, and we both told him not to be."
"Yeah, but all the same, I figured the Hat would have a dodgy time trying to sort him. He probably wanted to be with Scorpius Malfoy."
"My God, he loves that kid, doesn't he?"
"He said Scorpius was the brother he actually wanted."
"I don't like that."
"I don't like that either, sweetie."
"Do you...think he hates James? Like, really hates him?"
"I don't know. Do you think James hates him?"
"I don't know. But I don't think so. I hope to God not. It's like with me and Dudley. We hated each other as kids. He was a spoiled asshole. But we get along great now. It's the same thing with auntie. She didn't hate magic. She never hated magic. She was angry because she couldn't have it. You're...hurting my hand."
"Oops! Sorry, sweetie."
"You all right?"
"Of course."
"Anyways, they'll grow out of it, I'm sure."
"I hope so."
"James flinched when you hugged him. What was that about?"
"He thinks he's grown. Too old to be getting hugs from his mother."
"Kids these days..."
"Careful. You'll start sounding like my grandfather."
"I hope I don't sound like that much of an ass."
"Meh, only 40 percent."
"Ouch."
"I love you too."
A kiss.
"How's your left arm?"
"Better. That guy was an ass."
"Was he an Equalist?"
"Nope, just a common criminal. A jewel thief actually."
"Jewel thief? That's so late '90s."
"Tell me about it. The doctor at St. Mungo's healed me up quick. See? Good as new. Still some pain in it."
"Aw...poor little guy. Let me help."
"Yeah, that's not my arm. It's helping, though."
