The Eighth Year Universe

Love Wins

Everything's Always Changing

The chapter title is from the song:

Everything We Need by A Day to Remember.


Potter Manor

"Good morning!"

Harry looked at Bill distastefully, "You're too happy."

"He's always like this in the morning," Daphne said when she stepped into the kitchen, "Why do you think he's so unbearable to work with?"

Bill made a face behind Daphne's back, and Harry shook his head.

"God, you two are like siblings," He remarked.

Bill chuckled and held up the newspaper, "I like your statement about your scandalous relationship with the Longbottoms."

Daphne looked at the headline and scoffed, "A New Way to Love? Sappy. I hate it."

"Course you do," Lilly chirped as she dashed into the kitchen in her Healer's robes, "You'd have preferred – Scandalous Potter-Longbottom Affair, probably."

Harry grinned at the affronted look on Daphne's face, but his hilarity didn't last long. Lilly pointed at him, "You should not be drinking coffee. You haven't had your morning potions yet."

Bill snorted, "The downside of having two wives, I suppose."

"You can't even hold down one, so you're not one to talk," Daphne pointed out.

Bill rolled his eyes, "You're awfully bitchy today. Didn't you sleep last night?"

"No, William, I didn't," Daphne returned dryly. "Because I was up all night writing a goddamn eulogy because Astoria says it's fine, Daphne; I'll deal with the funeral arrangements, Daphne!"

She threw a hand out irritably, "Until it gets to the hard part, writing a spiel about how wonderful and fantastic our father was, and it falls to me to do that."

Harry grimaced and looked over at Bill, "Bet you wish you'd never asked?"

Bill nodded, and Daphne opened her mouth to continue her rant. But Lilly clamped her hand over her mouth before she could.

"Daphne, you're beautiful and I love you, but shut up, or I swear I'm gonna punch you," Lilly said calmly.

Harry grinned as Lilly shoved a piece of paper into Daphne's hands, "This is a template of the 'he was a wonderful man' speech you want. Take it to the study, modify it and thank me later."

Lilly let go of her mouth, and Daphne glared at her, "You're an idiot, but thank you."

"You're welcome," Lilly said quickly. She grabbed a croissant from the table and said, "I've gotta go. There's a middle-aged woman with a breech baby who needs my expertise. Take your goddamn potions, Harry!"

"I will!" Harry called as she dashed through the kitchen door into the entrance hall.

"Love you all!"

"Love you too!" Harry and Daphne chorused.

Bill smiled slightly, "I kind of envy you guys, you know? For making all of this work."

"Hm, it's called perseverance, Bill," Daphne mused, "It's what you do in a marriage that you want to last. What's the thing you do in marriages again….oh yes, give up and sign divorce papers?"

Bill glared at her, "I can find somewhere else to stay, you know?"

"Be my guest, but Charlie, Astoria and Amber won't be any less judgemental," Daphne said, shooting a smirk in his direction then leaving the kitchen.

"She's just pissed off that you hurt Lara," Harry said, "Rightfully so, probably."

"Yeah," Bill sighed.

"Listen, why don't you try talking to Rob Wolfe about this whole thing with Fleur?" Harry asked Bill, "I know you're only part werewolf, but he's a full wolf. Maybe it would help, just talking to someone who really gets it?"

"Yeah, maybe," Bill said. He patted Harry on the back and headed for the backdoor.

As he reached it, the door opened, and Neville stepped in. The two of them did a little dance in the doorway, then Bill headed out, and Neville came in.

"Where's Lil?"

"At work," Harry yawned, "Breech baby. Guess she's on-call?"

"Yeah," Neville nodded, "Daph's not gone to work, has she?"

"Nope, but she's still trying to write Cygnus's eulogy, so I bet she'd rather be at work," Harry said.

Neville chuckled, "Is it that hard to write something good about him?"

Harry shrugged and lowered his voice, "Honestly, Nev, I think she's struggling with the fact Cygnus lied about Lareina being dead."

"Yeah, well, we can't blame her for that," Neville said. He leant against the counter and moved closer to Harry, "And we can't keep the whole truth from her for long either."

"Just until the funeral," Harry promised, instantly regretting the fact he'd told Neville the truth after Cygnus's death.

"Hm," Neville said, his eyes on Harry, "You've kept things from her in the past, and it didn't go down well."

"Yes, but on this occasion, you agree with my logic," Harry pointed out calmly, "Because if you didn't, you would have told her already."

Neville sighed and nodded, "But we tell her as soon as the funeral is over, right?"

"I promise," Harry returned genuinely.


Blacknot Castle

Almina was tapping her foot, which meant she was nervous about something. She had been doing it for ten minutes now, and it was beginning to seriously irritate Hermione. If she didn't say something soon, there was going to be a confrontation.

"Dad?"

Draco looked up, "Yeah?"

"Can we have the wedding here?"

"At the castle?" Draco asked in surprise.

Almina nodded, "If that's okay?"

"Yeah, of course," Draco said with a nod, "That's fine."

"Why wouldn't it be?" Hermione agreed.

Almina shrugged and bit her lip, "I've been thinking….a lot… about the wedding, and there's something I need to ask you."

Hermione nodded, "We'll do anything we can to help out. Whether that's with decorations, or if you need us to contribute financially - "

"It's not that," Almina cut in, "We don't mind about the superficial things. I've tried telling Teddy's mum that, but she's still panicking about how we'll fit everyone around a head table. We suggested having a barbeque instead, it was Nick's dad's idea, but by Merlin, I don't think I've ever seen Teddy's mum lose it like that…."

Theo grinned, "Yeah, that probably wasn't the smartest idea in the world. She'll want a five-course meal or something. Bet she's already got an army of house-elves on it."

"Six courses, and she does," Almina said with a roll of her eyes.

Draco chuckled, "I'll tell her to back off. It's your wedding, Mina. If you want a barbeque, have one. Just make sure that none of us influences any of your decisions."

Almina nodded, "Thanks, Dad, but what I wanted to ask you was…."

She paused and bit her lip, "I know it will be a bit…different…but everything about this wedding is going to be different anyway."

They all looked at her expectantly.

"So I wondered, Dad and Pops if you would both walk me down the aisle?" Almina finally asked.

Theo frowned at his daughter, "Of course we will. I mean, I thought that was just a given, to be honest. You didn't have to ask, Mina."

Draco didn't say anything, and Theo looked over at him. He looked shocked, but not in a bad way. It was pretty clear that he was fighting back the tears.

"You….you thought it was a given?"

Theo laughed, "Draco, they're our kids. They've been our kids since we bought this bloody castle, and let's be honest, we referred to them like that before anyway. Of course I thought it was a given. I don't know why you didn't."

"Because his self-esteem still isn't as high as it should be," Sadie said. She smiled over at Draco.

Draco swallowed and looked at Almina, who was watching this interaction anxiously.

"I'll be honoured, Mina," He promised.

Hermione cut in, "But if you're doing the traditional 'dance with your dad' thing, I caution you against it. You know they'll end up dancing together and making a scene just to embarrass you."

"Oh, I could embarrass her all by myself," Theo grinned.

Almina laughed, and whatever tension had been in the air eased.

Sadie chuckled, "Have you set a date then, love?"

"Yes, we have," Almina said, "And it's soon, so don't freak out."

"How soon?" Sadie and Hermione asked in unison.

"A month and a bit away," Almina replied, "It's going to be on Mabon."

Draco dropped his mug of coffee, and silence settled over the drawing-room for a moment.

Almina frowned, "What? What's wrong with Mabon?"

"Nothing, darling," Sadie cut in quickly, "I think your dad was just surprised by quite how soon that is."

Draco nodded wordlessly, but he had paled slightly.

"I know you love Mabon, Mina," Hermione said carefully, "But a holiday isn't the best time for a wedding."

"I know, but it's when I always wanted to get married," Almina said quietly, "And with Nina being pregnant, we have to be selective about the date."

Hermione nodded, "I understand."

Almina looked around at them. She could feel the tension that had settled in the air, "So that's okay then?"

"It's fine," Theo promised.


Twenty minutes later….

"Why did I say it's fine? It's not fine!" Theo exclaimed.

Draco had the floo connected to Potter Manor, "You have to convince them to change the date!"

"We tried!" Daphne's voice came through, "They weren't shifting."

"Oh my god," Hermione muttered, "This can't be happening."

"Well, it is," Sadie said sharply, "We can't change their minds. Mina has always had her heart set on a Mabon wedding."

"And nobody knows that the prophecy is going to happen this Mabon," Neville's voice said, "I keep telling you all that, but nobody is listening to me."

"Really, Neville? We're not listening to you for a good reason! We are in the middle of a goddamn war," Daphne said sharply, "Obviously it's going to happen this year!"

"In the middle of our kids' bloody wedding," Theo despaired.

"Look, it's not going to happen at the wedding," Neville said simply, "Because through the spirits door can only mean the veil. They're not getting married in the fucking Department of Mysteries, are they?"

"No," Draco sighed, "They're getting married here."

"At the castle?" Harry's voice asked.

"Yeah," Draco said. He ran a hand through his hair, "So it's safe enough, which is something…."

"And listen, the prophecy says 'when darkness falls', doesn't it?" Neville cut in.

"Yeah," Theo replied.

"Darkness falls around 9pm that close to Hogwarts in September," Neville said calmly. "So if it does happen this year, then it's going to happen later in the day, not in the middle of the ceremony or something."

"True," Draco said begrudgingly.

"Neville's right," Sadie advised them, "Let's just put it out of our minds and focus on their big day."

The others nodded, and they disconnected the floo. But that air of anxiety hadn't dissipated yet, and it didn't feel like it would for quite some time.


London

"My parents were really strange about the date for the wedding…."

Teddy and Nick looked up at Almina in surprise.

"So were mine," Teddy said with a frown.

Nick nodded, "They kept trying to convince us to change it."

"Mine did too," Almina said.

"Why would they do that?" Nina asked cluelessly.

"I don't know, but it's suspicious that they all did, isn't it?" Almina asked the others.

Teddy glanced over at Nick, "Do you think your dad knows anything?"

Nick shrugged, "There's only one way to find out…."


Belgravia

London

"Thanks for agreeing to talk with me, man."

Rob shrugged and leant back in his armchair, "Yeah, Harry said you needed an ear. And I'm not good for much, but I'm alright for a chat."

Bill laughed and looked into his coffee mug.

"I'd have offered you something stronger, but I recently had to throw out all the good stuff," Rob admitted, "Developed a bit of a problem there."

"It's fine," Bill admitted, "I probably shouldn't drink during the day anyway."

Rob nodded, "So, what did you want to talk about? Werewolf problems?"

"Kind of," Bill said, "I'm not….I mean, I don't transform, so I'm not really a werewolf. But during the full moon…I feel different."

"Stronger?" Rob guessed.

Bill nodded.

"Grumpier?"

"God, yeah," Bill laughed.

Rob snorted, "Hornier?"

"Yeah, look, that's the one I need to talk to you about," Bill said quickly.

"I know. Harry gave me a heads up," Rob said, giving Bill a wolfish grin.

Bill laughed weakly, "When you got bitten, did things change for you in the…bedroom department?"

Rob barked out a laugh, "Yeah, my wife loves it," he joked.

Bill didn't laugh. He just looked down into the depths of his mug.

"Ah," Rob realised, "Yours doesn't?"

"My soon-to-be ex-wife doesn't," Bill said quietly, "My actual ex-wife though….she never minded."

Rob nodded but didn't say anything.

Bill continued, "I never slept with Lara on the full moon because I'm different. I lose control, and Lara was always worried I would hurt her, which…I mean, it was probably fair enough."

He shrugged, "But my first wife, Fleur, she never minded, she kind of embraced it… and we haven't been together for years then last month...we were, and it was intense."

"Well, it would be," Rob mused, "Was she the first person you slept with after you got bitten?"

Bill nodded, "I know about the whole 'mates' thing, and she does too. But it's intense, considering I'm not a full wolf."

"She's not a wolf as well?" Rob asked.

Bill shook his head, "No, she's part Veela though."

Rob whistled, "Fucking hell. No wonder it's intense. You've both got magical creatures living inside you. Not literally, obviously, but there's a reason she embraces the wolf. It's chemical."

"That's what Daphne said too," Bill said with a sigh, "But…it's been years, man. I can't just go back to her like nothing's changed. I can't just move into the house we lived in after we got married."

He sighed again, "This all happened because we found out our daughter is having a baby. Now we're going to be grandparents, and Fleur's moved back to the country, and it's just…it's a lot."

"It sounds like you've got a long going on, man," Rob mused, "But I think you need to simplify it. Maybe something about your relationship didn't work then, that does work now or whatever. But some people just aren't good at being married. It doesn't mean they love each other any less, but the commitment of a marriage kind of freaks people out, makes them think that they're caged."

Bill frowned and looked over at him, "Is that how you feel?"

Rob shrugged, "I never really wanted marriage. I would have married Nick's mum to free her from the life she was trapped in, and I married Jen because she didn't want a baby out of wedlock. But when you've got a caged animal inside you that wants out, feeling caged in a marriage can trigger you. It's why Jen's never made me feel caged. We give each other space when we need it. She makes sure I know I'm not trapped in this, you know?"

Bill abandoned his cup of coffee and looked over at the fire with a nod, "Fleur and I were good at being married. We just weren't good at raising a baby together."

"Well, no offence, but you're hardly a spring chicken, are you?" Rob pointed out, "You're obviously not gonna have anymore."

Bill let out a reluctant laugh, "No…but can years of being apart really be undone?"

"No," Rob answered honestly, "But if you love each other, you can build something new on those foundations, something better."

Bill looked at him in surprise, "That was poetic."

"I know," Rob grinned, "I've normally got to be drunk for gems like that to come out of my mouth. That's the kind of shit Harry would say."

Bill laughed, "Yeah, it is, but…you're right."

Before Rob could revel in that, a knock sounded on the door to the lounge, and Nick poked his head in.

"Hey, Dad. Can we come in?"

"Yeah, sure," Rob said.

Nick pushed the door open fully and stepped in with his little entourage behind him.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" Rob asked sarcastically.

"We've set a date for the wedding," Nick explained.

Rob nodded, "Okay. When is it?"

"Mabon," Almina answered.

"Ma-what-now?"

"Mabon, the 22nd of September, the astronomical end of summer," Nick reeled off, "Dad, how have you been married to a pureblood for this long and not figured out what Mabon is?"

"Because when Jen gets into a rant about all that pureblood stuff, I zone out," Rob replied offhandedly.

Bill laughed and said, "Mabon is a nice setting for a wedding. The point of perfect balance, isn't it? When day and night are equal lengths, we used to have a big thanksgiving feast on Mabon when I was a kid."

"Yeah, we did too," Almina said vaguely, "So no issues with the date then, Rob?"

"Well, it's a bloody Wednesday. Nobody wants a wedding mid-week," Rob pointed out.

"It's a holiday, Rob," Teddy reminded him, "Everyone gets the day off work."

"Oh, right," Rob shrugged, "Nah, no issues then."

Almina sighed and looked at Nick, "He doesn't know anything."

"What? Wait, what don't I know?" Rob asked defensively.

"Well we don't know, do we?" Nick asked irritably, "Cause we don't know either!"

"What?" Rob and Bill echoed.

"This conversation has been confusing from the beginning," Rob added, "So can we be less vague, please?"

"My parents freaked out when I told them the date," Almina explained.

"And so did mine, and Uncle Nev and Aunt Lil," Teddy added.

"But you're not freaking out, so you don't know whatever it is that they know," Nick added.

"Or he's an excellent actor," Nina whispered.

"He isn't!" Nick and Teddy chorused.

Rob huffed, "Well, now I'm just bloody offended!"

Bill looked at them curiously, "I don't know what they know either, but it is strange that they panicked about a date, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but they won't tell us what's so bad about that date," Almina said with a sigh, "So what are we supposed to do, exactly?"

"I'll talk to Harry," Rob said.

At the exact same time, Bill had said, "I'll mention it to Daphne."

The two wolfish men looked at each other and grinned.

"William, I think this might be the beginning of a wonderful friendship."

"Robert, I think you might be right."


Potter and Weasley Curse Breaking

Diagon Alley

When Daphne got into work to find a cardboard cup of coffee and a pain-au-chocolate on her desk, she narrowed her eyes.

"William!"

Bill ducked his head into her office, "Yes, Mistress of Evil?"

Daphne glared at him, "What have you done?"

"Nothing!" Bill objected.

"This is your apology breakfast, Bill," Daphne said, motioning to the desk. "The last time this appeared, it was because you had dropped a crystalline skull that was worth thousands of galleons, and you wanted me to break the news to the client."

"In my defence, it was trying to kill me. But I swear, I've not done anything this time," Bill said calmly, "You're just going through a tough time right now, and I'm trying to be a considerate partner."

Daphne raised an eyebrow, "Try again."

Bill sighed and caved, "Why did you freak out about Mina's wedding being on Mabon?"

"How do you know about that?"

"Rob told me!"

"Rob told you?!" Daphne remarked, "Rob? Since when are you and Rob friends?"

"Since yesterday, we bonded; it's a wolf thing," Bill said offhandedly.

"Ugh," Daphne groaned. She let her head drop onto the desk, "Honestly, Bill…it's family stuff. I can't talk about it."

Bill hovered in the doorway, "If you can't talk to me about it, then that's fine. But you should talk to your kid because he knows something is wrong, and he's freaking out, Daph. They all are."

"Your concern is noted, William," Daphne said icily, "If that's all…?"

"Yeah, sure," Bill said dryly, "But just a friendly little reminder? This is supposed to be the best day of Teddy's life. Don't ruin it just because you four wanted to keep a secret."

He disappeared, and Daphne sighed.

How could they tell them that a prophecy that could change their entire lives would potentially happen on Mabon this year?

She groaned and kept her head against her desk.

"I hate today."


St James Park

London

Harry sat down on a bench and looked over at Rob, "Are we here to feed the ducks? Because this feels very covert."

Rob snorted, "Nah. Just to talk."

"Uh-huh," Harry mused. He sipped the coffee that was in his cardboard cup, "About?"

"Our kids," Rob admitted, "They've set a date for the wedding."

"Yeah, Mabon," Harry said with a nod.

"You fancy telling me what freaked you out about that?" Rob asked calmly.

Harry's calm expression flickered, "I…I can't, Rob. It's not my place to say."

"Look, if you know something and you don't tell me…." Rob shook his head, "And something happens to any one of them; I'll have your bloody head."

Harry swallowed.

"I've seen enough kids I care about getting hurt," Rob said quietly.

"You, Neville, Draco and Theo…you four were my juniors when we started CPS, and one of you got held captive until he was on the brink of death. Another one of you nearly got paralysed, then two of you nearly died just recently. If you freaked out because the date might put them in danger, then you better tell me."

"I really can't say anything right now," Harry admitted, "Because it's not my place. But I can talk to the others, and…we'll work it out."

Rob nodded, "You better bloody work it out, Gandalf. I've lived for the last month thinking I'd lost my kid, and it was hell. I'm not losing the other one because you and your little gang wanted to keep a secret."

Harry nodded too, "I'm on your side here, Rob. I don't want them to get married on Mabon. I'll talk to the others, I promise."

"Alright," Rob conceded, "I trust you."


Hogwarts Castle

Harry was leaning against the wooden desk in the Headmaster's office. Neville was perched on the seat behind him, the one that had always been Dumbledores in Harry's eyes.

Everyone else was hovering around the room as they waited for the final person to arrive. The air was tense. They all knew why they had been called here.

The door opened, and Susan stepped inside. She frowned around at the occupants of the room, "Well, this is nostalgic. Strange place for a meeting though."

Neville smiled slightly, "I suppose Harry is just acquainting himself with his new office."

Harry didn't laugh though.

"What?" Most of them echoed.

"I'm taking the Headmaster post this September," Harry explained, "We were keeping it quiet what with…everything."

They knew he meant the war and the Saboteurs, so they all nodded.

"So Harry has already started to take over my school for his secret meetings," Neville teased.

Harry pushed himself off the desk and sighed, "I suppose you all know why you're here. Everyone in this room knows about the prophecy because Draco told me, I told my family and Daphne told Susan."

Susan shrugged, and Daphne rolled her eyes in response.

"Draco told Theo but wasn't aware until recently that Hermione had been told by Narcissa, and she then told Sadie," Harry continued.

There were several nods.

"Did anyone actually follow that?" Susan asked in disbelief

A murmured echo of 'yes' went around the room.

Harry ran a hand through his hair and sighed.

"Long story short, the first line – With the last embers of summer, when darkness falls – almost definitely refers to Mabon, the 22nd of September."

"And that is when our kids," Daphne said, motioning between herself and Harry and the Black-Nott's, "Have decided to get married."

"They're having a double wedding?" Susan asked in surprise, "Well, that's nice."

"It's more of a four-way wedding, and it won't be nice if it turns into a bloodbath," Daphne said dryly.

"It's not going to turn into a bloodbath," Neville muttered.

"This isn't Game of Thrones," Lilly agreed.

Susan's eyes flitted between them, "So this is why I couldn't invite my girlfriend? Because she's not in on the eighth year scheming crew? Because that is what this is, basically, all of us together in Hogwarts to scheme, just like old times."

"Essentially," Sadie agreed dryly.

"So," Harry pushed on calmly, "How do we force them to move the wedding?"

"Well, the obvious thing would just be to tell them about the prophecy," Susan suggested, "Like honest, open parents ought to."

"Why did we invite her?" Theo asked with a roll of his eyes.

Susan smirked at him in response.

"Because she has rational ideas," Daphne said, giving Theo a pointed look.

"And I'm serious," Susan added, "The way you're all acting….it's very similar to a previous occupant of this office. You're keeping it all close to your chest. You're being secretive."

"Because we don't want to scare them," Daphne cut in, "It's for their own benefit."

"The prophecy is about me," Draco agreed, "And if I'm right, it's also about Hermione. I don't want them to have to worry about us. Children shouldn't worry about their parents; it should be the other way around."

"It should be," Susan agreed, "But it often doesn't get to go that way."

"They might be your children, but they're also adults in their own right," Lilly pointed out. "Harry, just remember how you felt when you discovered everything that Dumbledore had kept from you."

Harry glanced at the portrait of Dumbledore, who was conveniently 'asleep', and sighed, "Yeah, I felt like shit."

"Exactly," Susan pressed, "They have a right to know."

Hermione bit her lip and looked over at Draco, "You think I'm the golden one?"

"It has to be you or Harry, but the prophecy is related to me," Draco replied quietly. "And losing you would hurt me more than anything else, so yes, I think you're the golden one."

"Silver eyes crying through the wind must be about you, Draco," Daphne said carefully.

"And like I said the other day, the spirits door has to be the veil, so the prophecy must happen in the Department of Mysteries," Neville finished. "It's not about the wedding, no matter what you seem to think."

"Still," Lilly said, "You should tell the kids. Let them know the risks, arm them with the facts and then let them make their own decision."

"We might not like it," Hermione agreed, "But we can't be like Dumbledore and cling onto power for the greater good of others. We raised them to be intelligent and opinionated; they can make their own decisions. Whatever they decide to do, we have to stand by that."

Harry nodded, "For the Greater Good might have been Dumbledore's life mantra, but I think all of us share the Greengrass's."

Theo nodded and looked over at Daphne.

"Family First," They both said.


Belgravia

London

When Jen let Nina into the kitchen, Rob frowned, "Nicky okay?"

"He's fine," Nina said with a half-smile, "But I just wanted to talk to you about something…to do with the wedding."

"Take a pew then," Rob said, kicking out a chair for her.

Nina sat down and took a breath, "I barely remember my parents. I was so young when they died…."

"I know," Rob said. He gave her a sympathetic smile, "I remember."

Nina nodded and looked down, "I remember that my mum was called Sarah, and she had white hair and red lips. They were always bright red, and she was always humming over a cauldron."

Rob smiled sadly, and Nina sighed, "And my dad, he was called Dorian, his hair was blonde, and he had kind eyes. But that's it, I don't remember anything else."

Rob reached over and patted her hand, and Nina took a breath.

"I remember the day they died. I remember finding them and not knowing what to do, so I yelled until the old woman in the flat above us came running down. Then an Auror took me into the ministry, where I met you," Nina said quietly, "I remember the waiting room and the old magazines. I remember you telling me you were going to find me somewhere safe to stay."

She looked up and smiled at him, and for a second, Rob saw her as a child again – with her face a little mucky and her platinum blonde hair in a messy braid, ice blue eyes staring up at him full of fear.

"You were the Auror who saved me after they died," Nina said quietly, "And…I want you to walk me down the aisle."

Rob stared at her for a moment, "Oh…Merlin, Nina…I…no, I don't deserve that."

Nina frowned and placed her hand on top of his, "What are you talking about, Rob? Of course you do."

Rob shook his head and looked her in the eye, "No, Nina. Harry was the one who convinced Howie Abbott to take you in. The good life you had? That was all on Harry, not me. I was just the kind Auror who told you it was going to be okay."

Nina squeezed his hand and said, "Then maybe both of you should walk me down the aisle?"

Rob laughed weakly, "Look, if that's what you want, I'll be honoured. You're everything I ever hoped Nick would find, and it breaks my heart that your dad can't walk you down that aisle."

Nina smiled sadly, "I never had a dad," she agreed, "But I grew up with a great family. I suppose now I'm just officially marrying into it."

Rob smiled and nodded, "You can count me in, and we can talk to Harry about it at this secret little meeting that he's called for tonight. Alright?"

"Deal," Nina said cheerfully.


Potter Manor

The drawing-room was fuller than it had been for a while. All of the Black-Nott's were here, and Neville and Lilly were too. Rob and Jen were perching by the fire.

And the four people whose wedding this was concerning were at the centre of the room.

"Before we start all this official shit," Rob cut in, "Nina and I had a chat earlier today."

Harry looked over at Nina, "Right?"

Nina's cheeks flushed, "I…uh, I asked Rob to walk me down the aisle because he was the Auror who saved me, but he said he wasn't, really."

Rob nodded at Harry, "You found little Nina Frost a home with Howie Abbott, and you spent the next few years checking in on her. I figured you should get a look in."

Nina smiled sheepishly, "So I wondered if both of you would walk me down the aisle?"

Harry smiled at her and nodded, "I would be honoured, Nina Frost."

Nina smiled slightly like she always did when Harry used her full name.

"How big is this aisle going to be?" Daphne asked sarcastically.

"As big as it needs to be," Sadie cut in, giving Daphne a warning look.

Daphne rolled her eyes and motioned to Harry.

"Can we just get on with this, please?"

Harry sighed and nodded, "You may have noticed that some of us panicked a little when you told us that you planned to get married on Mabon."

Teddy snorted, "May have noticed? Yeah, it was fucking obvious that something was bothering you all."

"Edward!" Daphne chastised.

"Mum, could you quit being all icy because Grandpa is dead?" Teddy asked calmly.

Harry raised a hand, "Teddy, don't."

Almina nodded and grabbed Teddy's hand, "Just tell us what's going on, please."

Harry looked over to Draco. The blonde man stood up and took a breath, "There is a prophecy concerning me and….other people, but we are yet to fully work out who. The first line of the prophecy is…

"With the last embers of summer, when darkness falls."

Almina frowned, "But…that doesn't necessarily refer to Mabon."

"Not on its own," Theo agreed, "But the last line of the prophecy is…."

"And the sun will set to the harvest moon."

Nina looked up at Almina, "The Harvest Moon will be full on the 20th of September, two days before Mabon."

"How do you know that?" Teddy asked in surprise.

"I track moon cycles for Rob," Nina replied, "It helps to adjust his wolfsbane depending on the strength of the moon."

Nick smiled proudly at Nina, and Lilly looked over at Rob, "You've got one hell of a daughter-in-law there."

Rob chuckled and smiled at Nina, "Yeah, she keeps an eye on me."

Nina smiled weakly and looked back to Draco, "I suppose the rest of the prophecy is bad if you don't want us to get married around that time?"

Draco nodded and took a breath, then he recited the rest of the prophecy.

"The consequences of meddling shall be revealed

Through the spirits door, where the breeze breaks

There fire shall fly from the raven girl,

Silver eyes will cry through the wind,

And the light shall fade from the golden one.

All that was un-done shall be remade."

"Well…shit."

"Nicholas," Jennifer scoffed.

Teddy looked up at his dad, "Why would you keep that from us?"

"Because of what it means," Almina said. She looked at her dad tearfully, "Silver eyes…like yours, Dad. The golden one….that's what people call Mum. It means that one of you is going to die."

Theo sighed, "Almina, it doesn't - "

"No," Draco cut in. He held out his hand and placed it on Theo's, "We said we would be completely truthful with them."

Theo fixed him with a hard gaze, "I'm not going to let either one of you die."

"But it's not necessarily your choice, Theo," Draco said quietly, "Everyone's time comes, and when it does, we shouldn't fight it."

Almina swallowed, and Draco turned to look at her, "It probably does mean exactly that, Mina."

"Could we not just lock you all up in a cage on Mabon?" Rob asked with a raised eyebrow, "I know where plenty of them are if that helps?"

Jen nudged him in the ribs, "Shut up, Robert."

Harry shook his head, "This prophecy relates to something that happened a couple of months ago. Time was meddled with, and this needs to happen to set that right. Trying to stop the prophecy….it could be catastrophic."

Almina looked at her parents tearfully, "So because Mama stopped Dad from dying, we might lose Mum instead?"

Sadie swallowed and glanced down guiltily.

"Almina," Draco said softly, "You can't blame anyone for this. I completely understand why your mother did it, and I forgive her entirely. So don't blame her."

Teddy shook his head angrily, "No, Uncle Draco, you can't just tell us not to be angry. Three of us are Aurors, we protect people for a living and Nina, she's a Healer, she saves people. You're telling us that people we love are in danger, and there's nothing we can do?"

"Yes," Hermione cut in, "Which was why we didn't want to tell you. We didn't want you to have to carry this."

"But if you want to get married on Mabon, you need to know the risks," Sadie finished.

"We're not getting married on Mabon," Almina said firmly.

"We're not?" Teddy asked.

"Mina, don't let some prophecy nonsense affect what you want - " Nick began to say.

Almina held up a hand, "No, just hear me out. It's not nonsense, it's a prophecy, it's written in the stars, and I take that seriously even if you two don't."

Nina nodded in agreement with Almina.

"We're not putting anybody at risk for the sake of a date," Almina continued, "Not least the baby we just found out about."

Nina smiled tearfully at that, and Almina finished.

"And I want all four of my parents to be at my wedding," She looked tearfully over at them, "I want to dance with them all. I want to cherish every moment because it might well be the last. I know that now."

Draco swallowed and looked down.

"So we'll bring it forward," Almina decided, "We'll get married at the end of August."

"That's two weeks away!" Rob pointed out.

Daphne snorted and said, "So? I can plan a wedding in a week if I put my mind to it."

"And I'll get my entourage of house-elves on it too," Theo said, grinning over at her, "Together, we can plan one hell of a party with two weeks notice."

- TBC -