Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. I make no claims to ownership.
Getting permission to visit the holding cells should have been much more of a challenge than the Auror on duty only shooting Harry a crooked smile. "Here to do some gloating, eh?"
"Right, gotta smother our victory in Malfoy's face," said Harry.
The Auror didn't seem to detect Harry's sarcasm. He finished his cursory search for any potential weapons, took Harry's wand, and then waved Harry through the door. Resisting an urge to roll his eyes, Harry walked slowly into the visitation room.
Sat at the table was Draco Malfoy. His unnaturally pale hair hung lank and tangled, a stark contrast to the immaculate appearance he had kept before the war. Light grey eyes devoid of emotion tracked Harry's progress across the room. He made no sound nor movement as Harry sat across from him.
"So." Harry cleared his throat. "Has your mother been to visit you?"
Malfoy's expression didn't change. Shifting uncomfortably in his chair, Harry noted that the concrete walls seemed to somehow glow. From his brief, intensive training as an Auror, Harry knew the glow indicated magic-suppressing wards. Even if Malfoy were able to get his hands on a wand, he wouldn't be able to use magic.
"What do you want, Potter?" Malfoy's scratchy voice drew Harry from his thoughts.
Harry sat straighter in his seat. "Well, I'm here to help you, of course," he said, unfaltering under Malfoy's flat gaze.
A single snort conveyed Malfoy's opinion of the answer.
"The same way you helped my father, I suppose," he drawled. "Do you think you can manage it a second time, Potter? My father should have served no less than twenty years. What will I do? Zero?"
Harry's lips pinched together. He was getting the distinct impression that Malfoy didn't want his help.
"That was the intention, yes," he responded stiffly.
Eyes feverish, Malfoy leaned forward, his mouth curving up into a mocking grin which somehow reminded Harry of Sirius. "Tell you what, Potter. If I get off with no punishment, you have to name one of your children after a Death Eater. I bet your little Weaslette will love that, eh?"
"Her name is Ginny," Harry snapped.
"Do we have a deal, though?"
There was no voice in Harry's head telling him to calm down and think straight. Instead he mirrored Malfoy's movements, his voice dropping into a steady, lower pitch as he said, "It's a deal."
Surprise crossed Malfoy's face before Harry continued.
"But only if your child has the most pompous name anyone can come up with."
For a moment, neither of them moved. Harry kept their gazes locked, determined not to lose this silent game. Besides, he had already won. He'd have to consult Andromeda, but Harry was also fairly certain Evan Rosier was related to Malfoy. James Evan could honor both of Harry's parents while respecting the deal, too, and in the meantime Harry would convince Ginny that Severus was an awful choice.
"Alright, Potter," Malfoy said at last. "I hope to see you in the courtroom."
Harry gave him a cocky grin. "Never fear, Malfoy. You'll have the best legal expert in the nation at your side."
Although Malfoy's eyes had narrowed, Harry made no further assurance and stood. He was humming tunelessly as he exited the room, which made the Auror on the other side raise his eyebrows.
"To make him stew in misery," Harry explained lightly.
"Ah." The Auror nodded wisely, even though he still looked confused. "Well, here's your wand. Oh, and can I get an autograph? It's for my daughter."
Long since used to such requests, Harry conjured a piece of paper and signed his name on it, along with scratching a short note to the man's daughter. Then he headed out for his lunch-date with Ginny.
TS
As soon as he Apparated into the Burrow's yard, a cry reached him from the porch.
"Harry!"
In a blur of motion, Ginny threw herself into his arms and immediately drew him into a kiss. Harry responded automatically and had just begun nibbling on her lower lip, asking entrance to her mouth, when someone giggled. Blushing madly, he drew back to see Mrs. Weasley watching them.
"Oh, go on," she said with a shooing motion. "Have fun on your date."
"Actually, Mrs. Weasley, I was hoping we could use the car," said Harry.
Her brows rose. "The one Arthur hasn't added enhancements to?"
"That's the one," he replied with a grin.
She narrowed her eyes on them and Harry widened his smile. Just as he'd known she would, Mrs. Weasley caved in an instant.
"Oh, alright," she sighed. "Just make sure to not use those enhancements."
In the shed Harry and Ginny found a replica of the old Ford Anglia. He touched his wand to the ignition, smiling as the car let out a low rumble. As he pulled out of the shed onto the dirt road, Ginny played with the radio until she found a station she liked. Then she turned up the volume and rolled down the windows.
"Ginny, we can't listen to wizarding music!" he yelled over the song. "What'll the Muggles think?"
"Who cares?" she shouted back to him. "They won't understand it anyway."
Conceding this point, he decided to let her enjoy the music. Besides, she looked so happy, dark red, flaming hair swaying as she bobbed her head to the rhythm. They passed between large open fields to the nearby town, where he intended to take her to the ice cream shop he and Ron had frequented while Harry still lived at the Burrow.
"Hey, what do you think this does?"
Ginny leaned forward to inspect one of the buttons on the dash. As she reached out to poke it, Harry gently knocked her hand away.
"I told your mum we wouldn't mess with anything," he reminded her.
She frowned at him. "Where's your sense of fun, Harry?"
Then, before he could do anything, she pressed the button. Water squirted across the windshield and Harry activated the wipers to clear off the droplets.
"Well that was disappointing," muttered Ginny, her voice barely intelligible over the music which was still blasting through the speakers.
When they reached the ice cream parlor, Ginny hopped out and turned to face him.
"I'm driving on the way back," she announced.
"Maybe next time," said Harry. "I still have work after this."
Ginny huffed but made no further comment. However, she did give him a hard glance when he opened the door for her. Harry got the feeling he'd done something wrong, but he didn't know what he'd done to offend her.
Inside the store, Ginny stared at the chalkboard menu listing the desserts and their corresponding prices. Her brow furrowed.
"Why would I want to eat a rocky road?" she murmured to Harry.
He frowned at her. "Haven't you ever been here before?"
"No, I've only been to town a few times. Diagon Alley was more fun." She looked at the flavor labels attached to the glass and then glanced up at him with a smile, all previous annoyance gone. "How about you choose a flavor for me?"
Harry did so and they sat down to enjoy the sugary cold ice cream. At one point, Ginny started to draw her wand to clean up a spill, and Harry had to grasp her wrist to prevent her from using magic in view of Muggles. She rolled her eyes but let him use the thin napkins to wipe up the ice cream.
As he started to tell her about his visit with Malfoy, Ginny interrupted him.
"You are going to get Snape an Order of Merlin, aren't you? He did a lot to protect me, Harry. I wouldn't have made it out of Hogwarts without him."
Harry cast her a confused glance. "What d'you mean?"
"I left for Easter break, remember? And then I came back with Mum and Dad." Ginny grinned mischievously. "Dad wasn't expecting me to grab him when he Apparated."
Until now, it had not occurred to Harry that Ginny wasn't at Hogwarts the last month before the Final Battle. He looked into her eyes, still bright and innocent. She hadn't suffered the same torture as the rest of the DA, and he was so thankful for that. He wasn't sure what he'd do if Ginny had been in pain. That was probably why Snape protected her, so Harry wouldn't do something impulsive like barging into the castle to save her.
"Yeah, I'll talk to Kingsley about the medal," said Harry.
She smiled again. "Thanks, Harry. Oh, and I've thought of a name to go with Severus, since you don't want to use James."
He paused with his spoonful of ice cream hovering halfway to his mouth. A sense of dread was pooling in his stomach at the spark in her eyes. "What is it?" he asked warily.
"Albus Severus," she announced proudly. "Don't you think it's wonderful?"
Wonderfully wretched, was on the tip of Harry's tongue, but he swallowed down the automatic response.
"They go together," Harry said while forcing a smile. It was the most charitable thing he could say about the name.
Ginny nodded. "I'm glad you think so. Another option is Sirius Severus –"
"No, I like Albus Severus," Harry said hastily.
After all, Dumbledore was the only one who could stand Snape. Hopefully Harry could talk Neville into being the boy's godfather, too, because someone with such a horrible name was going to need a stabilizing influence.
Please don't let me have a second son, Harry prayed to all the gods which might exist.
He cleared his throat. "Since we're on the topic of names, I was thinking Ruby Lilian and –"
"Lily Luna," Ginny said firmly.
Harry blinked. "Eh?"
"Come on, Harry, think about it." Ginny gestured emphatically with her spoon as she spoke. "Luna doesn't have any friends except for us, and I doubt anyone will want to marry her. We should honor her, don't you think?"
"I suppose," he said doubtfully. "But don't you think it'd be weird to have two kids named directly after my parents? We could have another daughter and name her for Luna instead."
This last part was spoken with a touch of hope, but Ginny was already shaking her head.
"No, I'm not having more than three kids. Imagine what that would do to my body! I don't want to end up like my mum."
Although he wouldn't mind seven children, Harry remained quiet. It was Ginny's body and they'd start arguing if he pushed the issue. They saw each other so rarely that he didn't want to end the date on a bad note, so he smiled and dug his spoon into the ice cream.
AN: Notice the 'eventually' in the summary? Harry and Daphne will be meeting soon, but remember, before they get together, Harry has to realize Ginny isn't the right woman for him.