Author's Note:
Well, I'm still a bit behind in my Christmas chapters (there's like 3 more) but Happy Christmas just the same! I am posting today instead of the holiday weekend so I hope you enjoy it!
Also — 12,000+ reviews!
You guys are amazing and I love you, 12,000!
For those of you have been asking — Yes, I did see the new Spiderman on opening night. It was amazing and I cried but no spoilers! PS — I can't wait to go again!
Wishing everyone a happy Christmas and a wonderful holiday! You will get one more chapter before the new year!
Reviews and Comments: To darkhk: Yes, you were the first review lol. Thank you! To Yusraa Ifthikar: Ha, yes they are flustered and sloshed Ginny is very fun, isn't she? I can give you a hint of Hinny smut and then leave you hanging if I want to, I did post early after all… LOL! To the Mandalorian terminator: Thank you! I thought it was time to have a silly chapter and seeing the girls all together and having a good time was very much needed. I have seen the trailer for the new Fantastic Beasts and it looks amazing! I can't wait. The Harry Potter reunion looks good too! To Wolf's scream: Harry did show remarkable restraint and yes, Augusta has a very good idea of the kind of person Hannah's mother is. To akshutalankar: Thank you! And well, teasing is fun, isn't it? To sunlitdxys: Thank you for saying the cock talk will always be one of your favourite things in ASC lol. Harry is definitely the sweetest. And don't worry, Harry and Ginny will find some time for some time… To Chiku11: Aww, I'm sorry about your grandparents, but thanks for saying Harry's remind you of them.
To Katie2001: Thank you! To ellyann13: They definitely are not starting with small talk lol. Yes, poor Ginny, she doesn't have anything to compare it to as Harry is the only person who has ever made it feel okay with no pressure. Happy this chapter made you laugh so hard you cried. Ginny's young, bounces right back! She did have a headache of course, but she powered through. Charlie is definitely a godsend and yes, Misha will be working with K. Yes, still a virgin LOL. To Bluerain22: You're welcome for the early update! Haha, I love that so many people laughed so hard they cried, ultimate compliment. Yes, she did sneak out to find Harry! Ah, Hannah's mum… it won't be roses. To GodMisha: Welcome back! I hope you did well on your exams! Thank you! To shivani: Thank you! Aww, thanks for loving me more today than you did yesterday! I'm glad you thought drunk Ginny was worth the wait. Ginny and Hermione definitely have to argue over who has the better arse!
To joss.518: Thank you! I didn't calculate perfectly as there are still 3 more Christmas chapters, but still it will mostly line up lol… sort of. Yes, the twins will be toddlers soon and the more family Zee has around can only help! Ginny is definitely his past, present, and future and they both know it. Happy to provide lots of Hinny. To Slaidback: Nope, not Sunday. I posted early because people were excited for drunk Ginny (and so was I). You're welcome and thanks for reading! To scrappy8: Thank you! To Nuno Neves: Thank you! Ginny is very lucky as Harry is the perfect boyfriend! Harry definitely did want to say fuck it, but he controlled himself. Hannah is a very kind soul and she doesn't deserve her mother's love. Yes, Harry and Ginny are sharing a bed more and more and I think you'll like what happens when they wake up (wink, wink). To Nightwing2013: Thank you! Is Harry going to be punished for what? And is what going to be confusing for them both after June? I am confused! Yes, I hate Molly bashing. I don't know why people can't just love her for the mum she is. You don't think Hannah will make it to New Years' with her mum? We'll see.
To Mutt N Feathers: I've never discussed my sex like that either, but I certainly have a lot of friends who do and have and try to get others to join in LOL. Happy to keep you entertained. To ANewRanger: Thank you! To Ava: Thank you so much! I am so happy to know this chapter made you laugh your ass off! Happy to know it was a success! To alix33: Thank you! To Guest: Thank you! Drunk Ginny was fun to write. To Guest: Twelve abs, obviously lol. To Kolua: Thank you! Happy to keep you laughing and glad to know you enjoy the talk about Harry's "stick" LOL. People try to get the truth and even intoxicated Ginny doesn't give a straight answer. To puttyman24: Thank you! Yes, Zee will be very happy to have her parents closer and not only for the babysitting LOL. To Sara: Thank you! Harry is definitely so sweet and I love Zee being a mama bear. You're welcome for the early post!
To The Book W0rm: Thank you for realizing that Harry was showing Ginny respect. She was drunk and he realized that. I wanted to show his maturity despite the fact that the poor boy was clearly dying lol. Thank you! Oh my gosh, Harry Potter and the Prophecy Fulfilled, yes, that was my first ever fanfic and my god, it is awful! I give you points for getting through it to be honest lol. I first published that in December of 2005 on Sink Into Your Eyes (wrote it over the course of the summer). Yes, I think my writing has definitely evolved (for the better) and the smut has most definitely improved as at the time I was a young and innocent virgin LOL. Thank you for saying you found it a good read because honestly I am afraid to go back and see how terrible it was if I'm honest. To MinervaMcGee: Thank you! As to the metric system, I am Canadian, it's what we use most of the time. As does almost everyone except Americans lol. I love Charlie and Tonks' friendship and I agree, as amazing as Remus is, sometimes Tonks needs a friend and not her husband. Thank you!
To Sunny Singh: Thank you so much! Harry is preparing, but I admit, I have kept a lot of it as of late behind the scenes because I don't know how to write it differently from what I've done already. But we might see more of it. No promises. Thank you! To ValGreg02: Thank you! We did need some girls night and we saw some drunk boy shenanigans over the summer when Harry and Neville ended up naked lol. I love your reviews so welcome back! To cateyes033: Thank you! Happy to hear that you've been enjoying it. Sorry to hear you had some bad tornadoes and hope all is well. I appreciate you dropping me a review and am tickled you're enjoying it so much! To VanaFaith: Don't go breaking your heart… I could if I tried (oh, wait, that's not the right lyric) LOL. Sorry, couldn't resist. No promises on who dies and who lives. But there will be death and there will be tears…
To Dianne: Thank you! And yes, I thought if anyone is going to have random knowledge about vaginas it's going to be Hermione Granger lol. Zee is definitely awesome and Harry, trying to be such a good boyfriend and yet wanting to touch his girlfriend so badly. Hannah doesn't know how to be selfish and yes, it will cause her heart to be broken. Caroline is not a nice person and Hannah needs to figure that out for herself. Misha might already know K… To pix25: Thank you for enjoying drunk Ginny. To Guest: Thank you so much for being my 12,001 review! That's amazing! I honesty have no idea how many more chapters this will be. I don't think that I will hit 400 other than that, I really can't say. To yunkol76: Thank you very much! The Weasleys will have a thing or two to say in terms of teasing Harry, especially when they see him as Mr July LOL. To Steel: Yes, I think she more than made an impression on Harry LOL. I loved writing girls night. I love the idea of the future Weasley sisters bonding together and oh, yes, the boys would be quite horrified and/or proud LOL. Thank you! To Obscure-Reference-Girl: I am so sorry to hear that you've been having such a rough time. I am honoured my chapter helped you through a panic attack. I hope everything gets much better for you over the holiday season, though I understand the holidays sometimes make anxiety/panic worse (for me at least). Wishing you a happy holiday all the same. Thanks for the review!
To nottthatchavi: You caught up in time for me to post! I love making Percy and Audrey all kinky, I think it's fun. Ha, it definitely doesn't go to his ankle. Harry is sexy all of the time and I love him being nervous and dorky to share a bed. Thank you! To bandhoez9194: Harry would be flustered, he is adorable. I know, Tonks definitely deserves all the hugs. To AQuickRead91: Thank you! I'm glad you found the chapter so funny, that's exactly what I was going for. Which Weasley would I want to get with? I think either Ron or George (especially the way Seriously Sam writes them). To AmericanDesi: Sorry you found the Ginny drunk scene so cringeworthy. I thought it was fun. I'm glad Misha is back too.
To ThaneOfTas: As someone who has walked in on her male friends having that exact kind of conversation, no, it's not. Yes, women do gossip more than men, but men are more blatant about making a comment about a woman when they see them that is often inappropriate and demeaning. No, not all men. But still, it happens. As to Ginny pawing at Harry when she was drunk and not taking no for an answer, I'm sorry you feel like she was pressuring Harry into something, she wasn't. I think Harry was being a great boyfriend by realizing that she wasn't acting like herself. I disagree about the photo shoot, but you're entitled to your own thoughts on it. I'm glad that you're enjoying the story and I'm honoured that I made you love my OCs as I know original characters are not always easy to introduce. I consider that the ultimate compliment to my writing, but I do disagree with your thoughts on Ginny being manipulative and forcing Harry to do what she wants. I'm not sorry for making him a stand up guy who waits for her to make a choice after the trauma she suffered through. I think that you are explaining it badly by saying "its starting to feel like Harrys entire character is just doing whatever Ginny wants. It feels unbalanced and sort of unhealthy, Harry seems to be willing to do anything for Ginny, and while Ginny very clearly loves Harry, she seems to be allowed to have priorities outside of her relationship with him, which at this point he just doesn't seem to. I think I'm explaining this badly, but what it boils down to is that Harry would and more importantly HAS done anything for Ginny, even stuff he isn't comfortable with, and while Ginny might well be willing to do the same for him, he doesn't ask and its seems like he is written to not even want anything that she would not be comfortable with. Basically Ginny feels more real at the moment than Harry does, at least in scenes about their relationship." — as I said, I disagree with this, but I appreciate you telling me your thoughts. I definitely don't think you were being negative, so please don't worry about that. Thank you for the review.
To TatiRena: I enjoyed writing sloshed Ginny! Thank you! To Fanfis01: Thank you! We do need some calmness before the action packed ones. To AnaGPotter: Thank you! Awkward fluff did ensue and yes, Misha and family are all in England! To briana_t: Thank you! Yes, now everyone knows that Harry has twelve snowman-shaped abs LOL. To katelyn453: Thank you! Glad I could make you laugh. To Sam: Yes, the snowman abs are finally here! Yes, Hermione might die from choking on her wine, lol. Ginny's ovaries were exploding a bit when she saw Harry with the twins. Molly is concerned and yet pleased Harry that is so thoughtful. Thank you! To PurpleLotus: Thank you! To Joyce Foesenek: Thank you! Happy to give you a good laugh over the girls comparing the cocks of their men lol. Harry is definitely much too sweet to take advantage of drunk Ginny!
To GryffindorHealer: Yes, they definitely had to get Hermione and Ginny drunk to get that info, that's why they kept pouring the wine LOL. You're right, Harry is much better at simply doing than planning. The planning part makes him nervous. No, no Ginny in a corner line LOL. To BadWolfKris: Thank you! To CorbanD17: I assume you mean 310 and good! Thank you for coming to my defence, but there was no need, I didn't take any offence to that review. To marauders_mowopapr: Thank you! I love writing sassy Harry! And yes, you will get another chapter before Christmas. To neumann: Thank you very much and you're welcome! To Mizfitz22: Thank you! I enjoy the quiet Hinny moments too. I like writing Molly as a good mother as I feel that people overlook that. Thanks for the review. To Bellmel: Thanks for saying that it was a total treat, I think so, too. Poor Harry, he wants her all the time and her showing up intoxicated and randy killed him lol. Thank you! I wanted to address the sleeping arrangements while still showing that parents know teens are going to be teens. Awkward Harry! I love writing him as sure of himself when stuff happens, but to actually physically plan to go to bed with Ginny that night puts him in an awkward mindset like suddenly he doesn't know what to do, even though he clearly does lol. Thank you!
My posting schedule: Weekly.
Thanks to Dusk for her amazing editing skills.
As always, thank you very much for reading and please, please review!
Your reviews give me life! They give me inspiration! And they make me want to keep writing for more than just myself! Thank you for all of your continued support!
CHAPTER THREE HUNDRED AND TEN:
The One Where Potter Bares It All
When Harry woke up the next morning, he blinked in confusion. His line of sight was full of his girlfriend's hair in the still-dark room. He carefully extricated himself from her beautiful locks and slipped out of bed. A glance at the clock told him that it was still early and that no one else would be awake for a bit.
He stood in front of the bathroom mirror, eyes on the impressive tent in his pyjama bottoms. Waking up next to Ginny, wrapped up in Ginny, had only seemed to make his usual morning problem that much more obvious. He shoved his pyjamas down to grip himself, thoughts of her gorgeous hair spread out across his pillow. Her teasing voice as she knelt on his bed in pink lace, the sound she made when he pressed his mouth to her. Harry rubbed his cock faster, letting his fist pump him to thoughts of her and he came quickly. He rolled his neck when he finished, cleaning himself up before he cleaned his teeth again.
He made his way back into his bedroom, feeling better after his wank and smiling at the sight of Ginny having rolled into the warm spot he had left in the bed. He tossed his glasses back on the night table before he moved back into his bed, snuggling under the covers and kissing her cheek.
She stirred but didn't wake so he kissed her other cheek, then her neck. He put his hands on her hips, lifting her long-sleeved cotton shirt up just enough to press a kiss to her stomach; she made a soft sleepy moan that made him smile.
"Morning, Ginny," he said, kissing her skin under her shirt. He trailed his mouth up higher, placing soft kisses along her ribs.
"Mmm," Ginny said, stretching her arms above her head. "Not morning. Still dark. Sleep more."
Harry's mouth kissed the underside of her breast. "Morning. I love waking up beside you."
Ginny opened one eye when he cupped a breast in his hand. "Kissing me awake is not going to work."
Harry lifted her shirt up a little higher, wrapping his mouth around her nipple and slowly sucking on it before he spoke. "Not even if I do that curled tongue thing-y."
Ginny's eyes darkened. "Well, that's not playing fair."
Harry kissed her nipple again. "So, I should stop?"
Ginny's fingers found their way into his hair. "I didn't say that."
Harry's lips curved before he returned his mouth to her breast and let his hand slide down into the sleep pants she wore. Her breath hitched when he brushed his thumb over her knickers.
"Are these the same pink ones you were wearing yesterday when you stripped for me and begged me to take you?"
"Didn't beg," she said.
Harry pressed a kiss to her hip. "You begged."
"Didn't," she insisted. "You ran away."
"You were completely sloshed," he whispered. "And for the record, it was the hardest fucking thing I've ever done."
Ginny bit her bottom lip. "I was buzzed, not sloshed. I knew exactly what I was doing and saying."
"You minx," he said, running his thumb over her knickers. "So, you were trying to kill me then?"
"No, that was just a lovely side benefit. And yes, I am still wearing the pink lace."
Harry licked his lips before he kept his eyes on hers and slowly inched her pyjama bottoms down. He tossed them off of the bed in front of the balcony doors before he let his hands slide up her thighs. He kissed her stomach before moving his lips over her thighs.
Ginny rolled a little to grab his wand off of his night table. She performed a quick silencing and privacy charm that made his lips curve.
"Worried you might make some noise or something?"
His wand fell onto the floor when he kissed her over the lace and her words disappeared in a rush of breath. Harry continued to place gentle kisses over the lace, pressing his lips against her longer and longer until the material was clinging to her and his lips. He tucked his thumbs into the waistband and slowly slid the pink frilly material down her thighs, tossing it over the side of the bed. Ginny made a strangled sound in her throat.
"What was it you said yesterday?" he asked, planting a kiss against her thigh. "Something about touching you?"
Harry kissed her higher on her thigh.
"About curling my tongue?"
Another kiss that went higher.
"Oh, I remember your words now, did I want to eat you out?"
His mouth pressed against her and her hands fisted in the sheets on either side of her.
"Do you?" she gasped.
Harry kissed her there again. "Trust me, Ginny. There's nothing in the world I'd rather be doing."
Then his tongue slid over her.
Ginny trembled, her legs falling open more for him as he settled himself comfortably between her thighs. His fingers spread her open as he kissed her, lingering enough to make her squirm. Then he slowly began to lick her like an ice cream cone.
The sight of Harry between her legs was enough to make her more hot for him than she had any right to be. But the look in those green eyes when he used his tongue, almost did her in. She loved that he loved to pleasure her. His tongue dragged through her folds, making her tremble and ache for more as he intentionally ignored her clit while he teased her. When his tongue curled, she made a whimpering sound and she felt his lips curve against her. Oh, he was definitely enjoying himself.
Enjoying wasn't quite the word that Harry would use. But he was very much exactly where he wanted to be. He teased her with his tongue, savouring every lick and kiss, every taste and flavour that was the woman he loved. Despite the wank he'd given himself only ten minutes before, he felt himself starting to stir against the bed as his tongue took care of her.
This was pure ecstasy. Harry couldn't imagine anything being better than this. She tasted amazing and the way she trembled against him, responding to each lick and curl of his tongue made him want to draw out every ragged breath from her. He added a finger as he dragged his tongue up to circle her clit and she whimpered.
Harry shifted, slipping one hand under her arse to squeeze as he lifted a thigh over his shoulder. He returned his fingers to her, adding a second one now as his tongue teased the bud in quick licks. When he flattened his tongue to give her more pressure, her thigh clenched next to his head. It only spurred him on more.
Ginny had shoved her fist into her mouth to stop herself from screaming. Despite the charms she had set with Harry's wand, she couldn't help but think she needed to stay quiet. But holy Godric, this was torture. Pure, incredible torture… It wasn't fair that he was this good with his tongue. She swore he'd always been this good, but she knew that wasn't true. She knew exactly how much he'd improved since the first time and the first time had been pretty damn good on it's own. His thumb began to press on her bud, circling it like a figure eight from right to left as his tongue plunged into her folds again. When his tongue curled and twisted as his finger slid in deeper, she was pretty sure she was about to lose all sense of reason and thought.
"Harry…" she breathed.
"Mmm," Harry said, dragging his tongue out over her before gliding it back over her clit.
His thumb slid into her as her clit slid between his lips. He was pumping her with three fingers now, stretching her as he did and for the first time she began to wonder if this was what it would feel like to have his cock inside of her. Would it feel as big as three fingers? Would it stretch her like this, moving in and out in this maddening fashion that made her want to scream his name until she lost her voice?
He sucked, the edge of his nail teasing the right side of her clit and her hips arched towards him. Merlin, he knew her body better than she did. Every touch, every taste… she was completely at his mercy and he knew it.
He did know it.
There was nothing he liked more than watching her like this, teasing her like this. His fingers had picked up speed, rocking in and out of her with renewed fervour as he sucked and licked her, gliding his tongue over her, into her, around her until she was a panting mess above him. Her fingers were in his hair, tugging and grasping in a way that made him even harder than he already was. He knew that she was close, he could feel her on the edge, waiting for him to send her over.
Harry pumped his fingers deeper, feeling her clench around him before he shifted his mouth to suck on the right side of her clit. It was her spot, the one he knew to only tease until she was desperate for him. He sucked sharply, his lips sticking to her and her hips lifted from the bed, her leg curling over his back as she let out a guttural moan that drove him insane.
He didn't stop. He kept at it, taking his time to worship every quake and tremble and when she finally finished, she turned her head into his pillow, a huge smile on her face.
Harry slowly removed his fingers, gliding them over her thighs as he kissed the freckles there. "All right?"
"Mmm," she said, sighing as she stretched.
Harry kissed her thigh again, pressing his mouth over every freckle. "Delicious."
Feeling empowered as his cock throbbed in his pyjamas, he began to work his mouth over every freckle on her thighs. He rolled her over, kissing her sweet arse and Ginny's breath hitched.
"Harry…"
Harry slid his hand over her arse, taking his time to cup and squeeze her cheeks. "You have the most delectable arse, Ginny. It's perfect."
He lowered his head to kiss it and she chuckled into the pillow.
"Do I?"
He kissed her arse again, tracing each freckle with his fingertip as the sun began to come into the room through the window. The light made his gaze move lower and without thinking, he cupped her arse in one hand and slid his tongue back into her.
Ginny squealed. Merlin, she was still so tuned up from the last orgasm and here he was, getting her started again. His tongue wasn't slow this time and by the fifth lick, his fingers were inside of her again. Ginny made to turn, but he only let her roll onto her side, tucking her leg around his shoulders as he ate her out.
It didn't take long before she was tossing her head back, her back arching in surprise as she came again. Harry didn't let her go. He rolled her onto her back and kept going. When she came a third time, she was fisting her hands in the sheets, clutching at her own sweaty hair and trying to push him away and pull him closer at the same time.
Harry kissed his way up her stomach, dragging his tongue over a taut nipple and her eyes widened when she realized that his stubble looked wet.
"You…" she gasped.
Harry kissed her. "That's how I want to wake you up every morning."
Ginny let out a strangled breath. "That's… Merlin, I love you."
He smiled against her lips when she kissed him again. When Ginny finally caught her breath and her heart rate had slowed down, she turned on her side; the feel of his hard length pressed against her thigh had her lips curving..
"Guess we should do something about this, shouldn't we?" she teased, sliding her hand over him through his pyjama pants.
Harry only nodded, panting when her hand slid inside to grip him. "Fuck… I wanked when I woke up, but tasting you is… mmm, oh, yeah, Gin…"
Ginny smiled, kissing his neck as she used both hands on him. He didn't last long and when she felt him tremble and let go, she kissed him. She wiped her hands on his pyjama bottoms before she snuggled back into him.
"I dropped your wand over the side of the bed."
Harry made a small grunt and she smiled.
"You'll have to get it so we can clean up."
Harry's breathing was still irregular and she grinned.
"I'm too weak to move."
Harry finally opened one eye to look at her. "I changed my mind. Having you in my bed is much too dangerous."
Ginny slid her hands under his tee shirt to stroke his abs. "Liar."
Harry sat up and reached over the end of the bed in an attempt to find his wand. Without his glasses, he was reaching around blindly and when Ginny's hands began to knead his arse, his fingers finally curled around it. He rolled back into the mattress and did a quick cleansing charm before pulling her into his arms.
"It's not even eight," he said, tugging the blankets back up. "We can sleep a little longer."
Ginny's fingers continued to stroke his abs under his shirt while her cheek rested over his heart. "I could use a nap."
Harry kissed her temple and closed his eyes. Yeah, this was definitely the best morning ever and he couldn't wait to wake her up with his mouth again tomorrow.
~ ASC ~
Hannah let herself into the cramped flat in Diagon Alley, feeling nervous. She had no reason to be nervous, she told herself. She was coming home to spend Christmas with her mother. It was a good thing. After leaving Neville's yesterday she'd stopped by Mandy's and ended up staying the night before she got the courage to head off. She hadn't told Mandy what she was planning as she knew her best friend wouldn't be as understanding as Neville had been. She took a deep breath before she stepped inside the flat and closed the door behind her.
Caroline was most likely at work since the flat was empty. Her mother worked three days a week serving up ice cream at Fortescue's. According to Caroline it was hard work that made her back ache and her feet scream in protest. Hannah had always thought it looked fun and when she'd been young, it meant she got free ice cream when she went to visit her mother.
Hannah moved to her bedroom, a little relieved to find it just how she left it. Her bed was made in the familiar purple quilt, but the room otherwise looked unoccupied. She'd removed everything from the walls before she left for school, the lamp had been shrunk down and stuffed into her trunk, but outside of the bed and night table, it looked deserted. She'd taken everything with her when she'd left for school in September.
Hannah tossed her bag on the bed and headed into the kitchen. She would make something for dinner, have a hot meal waiting for Caroline when she came home. Her mother never worked later than four. It would be the perfect introduction so they could talk. But first, it was time to decorate for Christmas.
She turned on the wireless, smiling at the recap of Hidden Passions as she got to work. It took her two hours to open all of the boxes of Christmas decorations, hanging them around the living room and putting up the small tree. The soap had ended and Christmas carols were playing in the background, making her smile. She put everything away before she moved into the kitchen to get started on dinner. Thirty minutes later, she had chicken grilling, vegetables frying, and baked potatoes in the oven. Hannah had just started to toss a salad when the front door opened.
Caroline stopped in her tracks, her eyes on Hannah. "Hannah."
"Hi, Mum," Hannah said, a bright smile on her face. "I put the decorations up and I have your favourite chicken dish cooking."
"What are you doing here, Hannah?"
"I'm here to spend the holiday with you," Hannah said.
Caroline frowned. "How kind of you to remember that you still have a mother after you so carelessly abandoned me."
"Mum, I didn't abandon you," Hannah said. "I went back to school."
"You took all of your things like a selfish runaway," Caroline insisted. "After everything I've done for you and you walked out on me, cutting me off from your life like the ungrateful daughter you are!"
Hannah carefully placed the grilled lemon chicken breast onto a plate before she spoke. "It's my last year of school, Mum. I'm going to open a bakery when I'm done. It's what I've been saving for."
Caroline scoffed. "Saving for? A bakery is a pipe dream, Hannah. Do you know how many people want to open up bakeries or own their businesses and fail? You need to have realistic dreams, ones that you can actually accomplish. You can't rely on the fact that you make somewhat decent baked goods! Do you think that I wanted to serve up ice cream for a living? Don't you think that I had bigger dreams and plans in life? Be realistic! I only want what's best for you, dear, and I don't want you to try something so stupid only to get your heart broken."
"It's not stupid. I'm good at it," Hannah said, twisting her hands nervously.
Why couldn't her mother just see that this was what she wanted? Maybe Caroline was right, maybe she would fail, but she wouldn't know if she didn't try and Hannah didn't know if she could live with herself if she never tried. Neville believed in her and that belief made her feel like she could walk on water.
"I'm good at baking," Hannah repeated. "I want to cater to weddings and special gatherings. I want to make beautiful baked goods that make people smile. I think I'm good at that."
"Please, Hannah," Caroline sneered. "You're only lying to yourself. You're mediocre at best. If I've told you once, I've told you a hundred times. The only way you're going to get anywhere in life is if you find yourself a wealthy man to take care of you."
Hannah let out a slow breath. "I want to take care of myself."
Caroline tossed her purse onto the sofa. "The train was supposed to come home three days ago, then. Is that what you've been doing, taking care of yourself?"
"I went to spend a few days with Neville and then with Mandy."
"Neville — the Longbottom heir?" Caroline laughed. "Oh, that's rich, dear. You want to take care of yourself, but you're cuddling up to one of the wealthiest families in all of Britain!"
"I'm not… it's not like that!"
"So, you're not telling him all about your stupid dreams and he's not telling you that your dreams will come true? Hannah, I thought that I taught you better than that. Men will say anything you want to hear as long as it gets you flat on your back. But here you are, opening your legs with reckless abandon, not thinking about the consequences. You better at least get pregnant or that bakery you want so badly is going to go tits up faster than this relationship! You don't think that man actually likes you, do you? He sees you the same as everyone else. A pretty face with a nice arse and not good enough to do anything worthwhile."
Tears welled up in Hannah's eyes and she furiously blinked them back. "You don't know anything about him!"
Caroline put her hands on her hips. "I know enough! I know he's convinced my own daughter to blacklist me! He convinced you to steal that money and to abandon your own mother like rubbish!"
"I didn't abandon you!" Hannah exclaimed. "And I didn't steal any money. Merlin, Mum, it was my money! I worked hard for it during the summer and I earned it. And I'm here now! Mum, why can't we just have a nice holiday together? Why must you say such terrible things?"
Caroline let out a huff. "I'm not trying to hurt you, Hannah. I just don't want to see you get your heart broken. Darling, it's just that no matter how much I love and adore you, I know that you're not as good as this man has made you believe you are. You won't be successful, dear. You'll fail and he'll be gone, leaving you soiled and used. Then where will you be? I know a baby seems like a scary thing, but it would hold him accountable to you. You would be able to have your little bakery with money to spare. Don't you want that? If you do it alone, you'll fail."
Hannah blinked back her tears. "I won't get pregnant on purpose."
"I know it seems like an awful thing to do," Caroline told her. "But it's really for the best. How else do you think I snagged your father all those years ago?"
Hannah's eyes widened to saucers. "What? You… did Daddy know?"
"Of course not," Caroline said. "He was engaged to some dirty stop-out who would have made him absolutely miserable! We fell in love and when I became pregnant, he broke off his engagement."
"You trapped him," Hannah whispered. "He was with another woman and you…"
Caroline waved her off. "Look, it's a simple thing. You put a few drops of a fertility potion in their drink and then you seduce them. Your father adored me, Hannah, and he adored you. We were happy."
"You lied to him," she said.
"A small lie," Caroline conceded. "He promised to take care of me and the baby, but then Julian got in the way, claimed that I was using him and Jake tried to take the coward's way out, said that our child wasn't even his. I was pregnant, Hannah. I gave him some love potion to bring him back around and once we were married, well… he loved you enough to stay."
Hannah shook her head, putting her hands on the table. "You told me that you and Daddy met at a Ministry ball. You said that you fell in love with him after one dance, but that wasn't true, was it?"
Caroline pursed her lips. "Sometimes you have to make choices to better your life, Hannah. And I mistook Jake for Julian and ended up pregnant with the poor brother's baby instead of the successful twin. Don't think I don't see the irony of that. I want you to be happy, Hannah. If you listen to me, I can help you make the right choices for your life. If you get pregnant, the Longbottoms will set you up for life. Us up for life."
Right choices? It seemed like everything Caroline Abbott had ever done resulted in the wrong choices.
"You don't care about me," Hannah said, the dawning realization hitting her like a ton of bricks.
"Hannah, dear, that's just not true! I'm your mother and I've loved and looked after you for seventeen years. Don't you want to help me now that you have the opportunity to do so?"
"Help you?" Hannah repeated. "I've been doing all of the cooking and cleaning and grocery shopping since I was ten. If I didn't pay our bills, you would have ignored them. The landlady said if you charmed the hot water tank again without paying for it, she would throw us out on the streets! She only let us stay here because I baked her son a birthday cake of his favourite Quidditch team."
"Hannah, you're getting hysterical. A hysterical woman is not attractive."
"Nothing I ever do is good enough for you! I don't wear the right clothes or act the right way!"
"I've never said that!" Caroline exclaimed. "I merely stated that you should wear something to show off your assets a little better. You have a beautiful body, Hannah, and you need to show it off if you want people to pay attention to you. I only want to help you."
"No, you don't," Hannah said. "It's only about you. It's how I can look good to better your life. About what I can do to make you feel better. Do you even care that I'm finally happy for the first time since Nana died?"
"Of course, I care!" Caroline said. "You're my daughter and everything I do is for you, don't turn this back around on me!"
Hannah scoffed. "It's funny that it's taken me this long to see it."
"To see what? Hannah, sit down, let's talk some more."
"No," Hannah said. "I'm done talking. I can't do this anymore."
"Do what?"
"Try to appease you. Try to make you love me."
"Hannah, don't be ridiculous!"
"I'm not," she whispered. "For the first time I'm finally seeing clearly. You don't care about anyone but yourself."
"That's not true!" Caroline exclaimed. "How dare you talk to me like that! How dare you stand there and belittle your poor mother! Do you want to break my heart? Is that what you want? Do you want to watch me fall apart, to slit my wrists and bleed out on the floor the way you're forcing my heart to bleed right now? Have you no shame?"
Hannah swallowed. "That's the difference between you and me, Mum. I do have shame that I don't deserve. I won't let you bully me any more. I'm spending the rest of the holiday with Neville before I go back to Hogwarts. Come June, I won't be returning."
"Hannah!" Caroline shouted when Hannah moved to her room to grab her bag. "If you think I'm just going to let you walk out of here after the way you just acted —"
"— You'll what?" Hannah retorted. "I'm seventeen, Mum, and I don't need you anymore. I haven't needed you for a very long time and I think that's what scares you because you need me. But I won't stay here and let you suck me dry like a parasite. I won't. Goodbye, Mum."
"Hannah, if you walk out that door, you will not be welcome back here!"
Hannah closed her eyes, her hands on the doorknob before she spoke. "I know. Goodbye, Caroline."
She wrenched open the door as her mother shrieked at her.
"You will not call me by my first name like some disrespectful heathen!" Caroline screamed. "Get back here, Hannah!"
But Hannah ignored her.
She hurried down the steps into Diagon Alley, tears blurring her vision. She could still hear her mother shouting for her as she turned and Disapparated, appearing on the edge of Cumbria, and her heart pounding in her chest. She stumbled up the path, unable to see through her tears, her bag slipping off of her shoulder. She skated on the icy cobblestones and when she knocked on the door, she felt like her chest was going to explode.
The door opened and great-uncle Algie blinked at her. "Hullo, Hannah, dear."
Hannah's breath hitched, but when she tried to speak, no sound came out except for a garbled sob.
"Algie! Who's that at that door?" Augusta demanded, her cane clinking on the wood as she approached. "You're letting the cold in!"
"Well, it seems that she's frozen in place," Algie said, scratching his head.
Augusta stared for a moment before she shot a huge ostrich from her wand. It disappeared through the wall before she stepped forward and put her arm over Hannah's shoulders.
"Come in out of the cold, dear."
Algie closed the door behind her as Hannah stood in the entranceway, shivering as she let out strangled breaths in an attempt not to sob.
"Hannah, dear, are you hurt?" Augusta asked kindly.
Hannah felt frozen. She couldn't move.
Neville came in from the back of the house, his eyes on her. "Hannah?"
Her eyes met his and the moment she looked at him, she lost control and began to sob. Neville caught her before she collapsed to the floor. He scooped her up into his arms and carried her into the living room. Hannah clung to him as he sat her on the chesterfield, her face pressed into his shoulder and her whole body shaking in sobs.
"Should I get her some brandy?" Algie asked.
"No. For Merlin's sake, Algie, can't you see the girl is upset? Go! Off with you!" Algie sauntered off and Augusta's eyes met Neville's. "Griselda and I will take tea in the sunroom. If you need anything, let me know."
Neville nodded his thanks, holding Hannah close as she sobbed uncontrollably in his arms.
Hannah couldn't stop the tears. She couldn't even stop to take a breath to apologize for sobbing all over him. It was like every horrible thought, every pit of anxiety, every moment of unhappiness that she'd ever had bubbled over into this catastrophic mess that she couldn't control. Her fingers fisted in the jumper he wore and she absently noted he smelt more floral as opposed to his usual woodsy greens, but it was comforting. His large hands sat on the small of her back, one stroking her spine as his lips pressed against her hair.
Without allowing herself to worry about the fact that she was drooling and crying over him, Hannah burrowed her face closer into his shoulder and let herself cry. Tears ran down her face like a fountain, mascara smearing her cheeks.
But she kept crying.
And part of her worried that now that the floodgates had finally opened, she would never be able to stop.
~ ASC ~
Harry woke Ginny up their second morning exactly the same way. She snuggled against him afterwards, her breath still coming out in ragged gasps and he kissed her temple.
"I could get used to this," he said.
Ginny made a half snort, half sigh. "Tell me about it."
Harry kissed her cheek, her neck, smiling when she pushed him back against the pillows and rolled on top of him. She was still wearing one of his old pyjama shirts, only two buttons still closed and his hands slid over her thighs, glorying in the fact that she was still very naked from the waist down.
Ginny's lips pressed against his throat, moving over his shoulders, her hands sliding under his tee shirt as she straddled him. Then those small hands were moving over his abs, kneading and stroking his skin in a teasing fashion while her hot mouth pressed over the skin at his collarbone.
Ginny had no idea that Harry was going to wake her up with his mouth two days in a row, but she most certainly wasn't complaining. While yesterday had been slow and teasing, he hadn't felt the need to talk to her first today. She'd woken because his mouth was doing the most delicious things to her breasts. She had barely said his name to let him know that she was awake, before his fingers had slid into her.
The euphoric look on his face when she came had made her want him all over again. She positioned herself over him, the feel of him hot and hard against her thigh making her smile. Ginny couldn't quite put into words how sexy it was that he was so hard after pleasing her. The tip of his cock had escaped his bottoms at this point, pointing at his stomach. She placed her hand over the cotton, rubbing him and he groaned.
Feeling emboldened, she pushed his shirt up to drag her tongue over his nipple and pressed herself against his cock. Harry's body jerked under her, his eyes wide. Ginny dragged her tongue over his nipple again, the feel of the thin cotton between them doing nothing to hide his impressive erection pressed against her core. Ginny placed her hands on his shoulders before her eyes met his and she began to grind herself against him.
The sound Harry made had her getting more turned on than she could explain. She ground herself against him again, the feel of him pressed against her through the cotton, making her eyes widen.
"Ginny," he gasped.
His hard cock was pressed against his stomach under his pyjama bottoms and when she ground against him again, his eyes rolled.
"Fuck, that feels so good," he hissed.
Ginny's brown eyes met his. "I like feeling you like this."
Harry's eyes rolled again as she rubbed against him. Merlin, if she kept this up, he was going to combust.
"So big beneath me," she whispered. "So hard, just for me."
"Ginny…" he panted. "Ginny, please…"
Ginny began to grind against him faster, the heat of him against her making her gasp. Without planning it, she reached down and began to rub her clit and Harry's eyes darkened. His hands gripped her arse, holding her in place as he arched himself up against her, his cock rubbing furiously.
Ginny's thumb pressed against herself and she came a moment before Harry's cock trembled beneath her. She kept grinding, unable to stop herself as he finished, making a mess in his pyjama bottoms and across his chest from where his tip had escaped. She collapsed against him, legs entwining with his and her breath ragged.
Harry's hands were still holding her arse, he kissed her forehead, letting his hands slide up her back and under the shirt she wore. Her mouth met his and they kissed softly for a few minutes before he kissed her cheek.
"I need to…"
Ginny nodded and rolled off of him, putting a hand to her hair. She watched him grab his wand and clean them both up before he rested his arms on the bed on either side of her.
"You okay?"
"Never better," she said.
Harry licked his lips. "That didn't make you scared or…"
Ginny cupped his cheek. "No. It felt just right. I love you, Harry."
Harry smiled and bent his head to kiss her. "I love you, too."
They held each other a moment, basking in each other's lips before the sound of a baby crying tore them both apart.
Ginny stretched. "Sounds like Mina and Leo might be waking up."
He nodded and pecked her lips. "Zee will take some time to get them downstairs. Why don't you shower first and I'll go start making us all some breakfast?"
Ginny kissed him again. "That sounds perfect."
Harry watched her climb out of bed, finding her knickers on the floor and tugging them on. She grabbed her robe next before her bag of toiletries and she winked at him before disappearing. Harry stretched out across his bed, a huge grin on his face and wondered if he could convince Ginny to grind like that more often.
He used another cleansing charm on himself just to be sure before he tugged a jumper over his head and found his slippers. He headed downstairs and opened the ice box to see what was there. Five minutes later he was frying bacon when Zee came into the kitchen.
"Harry, you're up early."
"We heard the twins making noise. Ginny's in the shower. I was hungry."
Zee moved to get some milk for Mina and Leo. "Did you sleep all right?"
"Brilliant," he said. "Waking up next to her is just… Zee, I'm going to marry her one day."
Zee paused what she was doing to look at him. "I know. I can't wait for the day I get to witness that." She kissed his cheek. "How do you feel about turning that bacon into Grandma's famous breakfast hash?"
Harry grinned. "That sounds perfect."
Harry and Zee were cooking companionably, music blaring from the wireless as Mina and Leo ran around the kitchen trying to get into cabinets and cupboards with curiosity when Ginny came down.
"You two look like you're having fun," Ginny said.
"Pour the orange juice, Ginny," Zee said. "Harry and I have cooked up a feast for you."
"Excellent, I'm famished!"
Ginny helped rein in Mina and Leo into their highchairs as Harry served up breakfast. They had just settled down to eat when Ginny passed a flat package across the table towards Zee.
"I have an early present for you."
Zee's eyebrow rose. "For me?"
Ginny nodded. "I was going to mail it earlier, but I wanted to see your face when you opened it."
"Ginny, no," Harry said when he recognized the glint in her eye. "It's bad enough that you sent one to George!"
Ginny grinned. "Oh, the twins have some fun plans for you when you come to the Burrow, don't you worry."
Zee gave them both a strange look as she pulled the calendar out of the brown paper. "Best Arses of Hogwarts?"
"Harry's Mr July."
Zee burst into laughter as she opened it to the seventh month. "Oh, goodness!"
Harry snatched the calendar from his mother's hands. "You really don't need to see that!"
"Oh, but I really think that I need to hear the story behind this," Zee said, turning back to her breakfast.
Ginny launched into the article that was sent anonymously to the Herald and how Theo had vouched that the photos weren't good enough. She explained how she'd had the idea and how she, Colin, and Theo had proceeded to set up photo shoots for those chosen.
"We raised three thousand Galleons for the children's hospital. It really was for a good cause."
"And bloody embarrassing," Harry said as they finished up their breakfast. "People kept asking me to autograph it."
"Ron didn't seem to mind when people asked him," Ginny pointed out.
Harry rolled his eyes. "Your brother is too proud of his arse."
Zee chuckled. "It's funny actually that you did this."
"Why?" he asked.
"When I went through all of Sirius' things long ago, I found this box stuffed in the back of the walk-in upstairs, and saw it was full of motorbike magazines so I left it there, thinking I would come back to it later and see if any of them were worth keeping," Zee explained. "I forgot all about it to be honest, but Mina and Leo got into the box last week and well… I thought you might want to see what I found, considering."
Harry frowned. "Why? Were they particularly brilliant motorbike magazines?"
Zee's lips curved. "Some of them. I'll be right back."
Harry exchanged a look with Ginny as Zee moved into the sunroom and returned carrying a large cardboard box. She placed it on the table and sat back down. "Have a look."
Harry stood up to look in the box, pulling out a stack of ten motorbike magazines.
"Those were only on the top, but it's what I found underneath that intrigued me. I originally didn't dig that deeply."
Harry frowned, pulling out another six magazines on motorbikes before his eyes fell on the Witch Weekly magazine. The top of the magazine had the issue number and the date read 15 September 1978. The title flashing across the top said: Potter Heir Makes Head Boy!
His father was posed on the cover, straddling a chair backwards with a Head Boy badge pinned to the lapel of the cloak he wore. He was in black trousers, Gryffindor socks seen between his trousers and dress shoes. The cloak was open, revealing his Gryffindor tie loose around his neck, suspenders, and no shirt. The slow smile he gave was full of confidence and Harry stared at the cover in amazement.
"What is this?"
Zee chuckled. "Apparently, Witch Weekly has been a fan of the Potters before you, Harry. There are dozens of them in there."
There were dozens of them.
Ones of James wiping sweat off his face with his shirt, exposing his abs after Quidditch practice, ones that were clearly candid from around Hogwarts, others that he had clearly posed for. The headlines were all different variations of the same.
Potter Heir Scouted by Portree!
James Potter, Bad-Boy Turned Head Boy!
James Potter, Broomstick Hair or Sex hair?
James Potter, Only Heir of Potter Fortune!
James Potter, Future Marquess!
Potter Heir Engaged to Muggleborn Witch!
Lily Evans — Is She a Niffler?
Muggleborn Attempts to Steal Potter Heir!
Potter Makes Top Five of Most Eligible Bachelors in England!
Lily Evans, Potions Genius — Has She Bewitched Potter?
Potter Bares It All!
The last one was a photo of his father in nothing but a skimpy towel at his waist that kept slipping before he caught it in the loop. The title above it said: Potter's Wand Turns Heads! How Big Is Too Big?
Potter Poses for Charity!
Sirius Black and James Potter, Notorious Bad-Boys Turned Good!
They went on and on. Harry kept looking at the magazine covers, his eyes wide in shock.
Ginny picked up the one of James in the towel. "These are gold!"
Harry's face flushed. "Those are mortifying!"
"Didn't look like your dad minded posing?"
"Posing for charity? And what's all this tosh about my mum being a niffler?"
"I don't know," Zee told him. "I guess you'll have to ask Remus about that. I just found them and thought that you'd appreciate the irony. After all, your summer photo shoot did cause it's own stir."
"Uncle Sirius is on the cover a lot too," Harry said, pulling out more issues with Sirius posing. The titles varied based on what was inside.
Disowned Black Heir Too Sexy to be Disgraced!
Potters Defend Sirius Black Against Black Family Backlash!
Black Bares It All!
Harry dropped the magazine, slamming his eyes shut in horror, as Ginny caught it. Sirius was completely nude on the front and unlike the one of his father where he'd been attempting to hold the towel in place, Sirius was sprawled across red silk sheets, his arse exposed as he lay half on his side a motorcycle helmet sitting in front of his bits.
"Damn!" Zee said, snatching it from Ginny. "He told me all copies of this were burned!"
"I'm blind," Harry said, taking off his glasses and placing a hand over his eyes before emitting a pained expression.
"Dramatic much?" Zee asked, her eyes oh the photo. "Damn, he's fine here. Twenty-one and tatted up. Headline says the proceeds for the photos went to the children's charity. How sweet."
Ginny winked at Harry. "Like fathers like son in more ways than one."
Harry sighed. "These are mortifying."
They looked up at the sound of the front door and Zee greeted Remus and Tonks with a smile.
"Remus! Perfect timing! I was just showing Harry what I found last week."
Remus looked intrigued before his face broke out into a huge grin at the sight of the magazines. "Merlin, I forgot about those. This one of Sirius, he was way too bloody proud of for his own good."
"As he should be," Zee exclaimed. "My man was fine as hell."
Tonks looked at the magazine her husband was holding. "Oh my Godric!"
Remus chuckled. "That's the tame one, Nymphadora. Did you lot see the one he did for Witch's Fantasy?"
"No," Zee said.
Remus began to rifle through the box as he spoke. "He claims all copies were destroyed, but he totally kept one. Ah-ha!"
He pulled out the magazine issued April 1981 and opened it to the centrefold. Harry slammed his hand over his eyes again. Sirius was displayed in full naked glory on black silk sheets. His leather jacket draped over his shoulders and his hand wrapped around his cock in a way that hid it from view, but still made the image incredibly provocative. The one next to it was of him straddling his motorbike completely nude except for the black combat boots he wore, his arse barred to the world.
"Mater Bozhya!" Zee said, biting her bottom lip.
"Well, I agree my cousin was definitely built, but his cock is nothing compared to Remus'," Tonks said.
"Tonks!" Harry exclaimed.
"What?" Tonks said, innocently. "According to the papers, you have nothing to be ashamed about."
Harry's face flushed bright red.
"I already told him that James and I made a Big Cock Club at Hogwarts. Sirius wasn't invited."
"Remus!" Tonks goggled, her eyes wide.
"It was a joke," Remus said. "Padfoot was always so fucking — sorry," he said quickly when Zee gave him a look. "I meant er… very confident and cocky. When he found out that me and Jamie were a little bigger than him, he took it personally."
"So, you made a Big Cock Club?" Tonks teased. "I hope that you were the prime minister."
Remus rolled his eyes. "It wasn't a real club, Dora. We just said it to tease him and told him that he didn't qualify due to his tiny prick."
"Hey!" Zee said. "That's just mean. Sirius was no slouch in that department, trust me. And he most certainly wasn't tiny!"
Tonks winked at Ginny. "Yeah, but our men are still bigger."
Zee stuck her tongue out at Tonks.
"Why?" Harry exclaimed. "Why must this be a conversation? Please, just kill me now."
Ginny slipped her hand in his. "I love it when you're embarrassed."
"Why was Uncle Sirius posing for these?" Harry asked, attempting to change the conversation. "I thought that he was disowned from his family."
Remus chuckled. "Sirius may have been disowned from his family, but he was still a Black. A rich Black at that. He was on the list of eligible bachelors since he was seventeen. He and James were always being listed in magazines, photographers snapped photos when they were seen around London or Apricity Lane. It was Lily who found out about the charity. They were making calendars and some photographer Sirius met in a bar convinced him that it would be great for his image if he modelled for her. He wheedled James into doing it too. If I remember correctly, Lucius Malfoy, Gideon and Fabian Prewitt, Frank Longbottom, Caradoc Dearborn, and a few others like some famous Quidditch players and well known Ministry employees were all convinced to help out. They raised over ten thousand Galleons and all of the proceeds went to St Mungo's. It was all a big publicity stunt. As to Witch's Fantasy, Sirius didn't realize the witch he was shagging worked for the magazine… when his picture appeared in the centrefold he was furious and then bloody proud."
Zee snorted. "He would be proud."
"I went over to James and Lily's for dinner and Sirius blew up his centrefold and plastered it across the living room wall. Lily and I walked in at the same time. I remember Lily had Harry in her arms and she said something along the lines of 'Gallopin Gargoyles! I could have gone my whole life without seeing that much of you, Sirius.' He responded with his usual of she didn't know what she was missing," Remus said.
Ginny laughed. "I can't believe these exist!" She pointed to the one of James snagging the towel before it fell, but not quick enough that a small preview of the top of his groin was still shown. "This is borderline pornographic. I can see where you got your good looks from, Harry."
Harry snatched the magazine from her fingers. "Don't ogle my dad, that's wrong on so many levels."
Zee chuckled. "These are gold."
"What's this?" Tonks asked, picking up the calendar opened to Mr July. "Oh Merlin!"
"Give that to me," Harry said, attempting to snatch it from her hands but she turned away to flip through it.
"You posed? And your judging your dad and Sirius and for doing the same?" Tonks exclaimed.
Harry blew out an exasperated breath. "It's… Ginny asked me to do it!"
Ginny chuckled. "It was for St Mungo's."
She quickly explained about the article and when she mentioned Theo's involvement, Tonks flipped through to October and grinned.
"Can I get a copy of this?"
"Sure," Ginny said at the same time that Harry growled. "No."
Harry ignored her and turned to Remus. "Uncle Remus, why did the press call my mum a niffler?"
Remus let out a slow breath. "Because she grew up in Cokeworth and she was Muggleborn. She came to school with second hand things and when her parents were killed, she was essentially an orphan and had nothing. Her sister kept everything that belonged to her parents and Lily didn't have much. She took tutoring jobs around Hogwarts so that she could try to pay for a flat when she finished school. Then there was James, one of the wealthiest wizards in Britain. People were just shooting their mouth off; claiming that she only was with him because she was poor."
Ginny frowned. "But she loved him."
Remus shrugged. "Yes, she did. Jamie knew that, but the articles still hurt her. She was an amazing Potioneer and when people heard of her skill, well the rumours changed to her using love potions. We ignored them, but the press can be vicious as Harry knows."
Zee began to put the magazines back in the box. "Well, I think these are absolute gold."
"That's because it's not your dad in them," Harry grumbled.
"Ginny's uncles are here as well," Remus said, finding the two issues that had provocative poses of the Prewitts. "They posed for charity."
"My mum never said that, I'll have to ask her. They were younger than her."
Remus chuckled. "Despite the war, there were still some good things that happened. And once James and Lily went into hiding, the focus became more on Sirius which he encouraged as it stopped people asking about where the Potters were. I think that's why he posed as many times as he did. And for his vanity of course."
Harry's lips curved at that. "Yeah, I can see that."
Zee piled the magazines back into the box. "Well, we'll just keep these then. In the meantime, what are you two planning to do today?"
Harry shrugged. "I don't know. I wanted to take Ginny to Clevedon Court and show her the renovations."
"Good," Zee said. "We can all go. Grandma and Grandpa want to see your stables."
Ginny squeezed his hand in hers. As much fun as that sounded, Harry couldn't help but be disappointed to know that the alone time with his girlfriend he had been imagining had just disappeared.
"Sounds great," he said. "I'll head up and shower then. Tonks, are you not working today?"
"No," she said. "My work husband told me to take another day off. He said he needs me in top form and wants to make sure I rest. I'm going to be interrogating Goyle more tomorrow."
"Work husband?"
Remus rolled his eyes. "Don't ask."
Tonks stuck her tongue out at him. "So, how do I get a copy of that calendar?"
"I have one wrapped for you already," Ginny said.
"Ginny," Harry groaned.
Ginny grinned. "I knew you'd want to see it."
Tonks' smile widened. "I definitely do!"
Harry shook his head as he left the kitchen to go shower and hoped Tonks wasn't going to use the calendar to embarrass him further. Then he thought about the magazines his own father and godfather had posed for and shook his head. There were some things he really didn't need to know.
He hoped Tonks didn't bring up the calendar again any time soon, but he wasn't going to hold his breath.
~ ASC ~
Theo had almost talked himself out of attending at least a hundred times, but when he arrived at the Ministry of Magic for the last session of the year, he found himself looking around for the tall dark haired Auror despite himself. He sat through the Wizengamot meeting, his hands constantly moving in his lap and only half-listening to the review of what they'd done in the last little bit. When Marchbanks wished them all a happy holiday and said that she would see them in the new year, he jumped to his feet.
"You okay, Theo?" Bill asked, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I've never seen you so twitchy during a session."
"Yeah, I'm fine," Theo said. "I just… have a lot on my mind."
Bill nodded. "Well, I spoke to Na'eemah and Kingsley. She'll be making plans to visit some of our mutual friends in the new year."
"That's great news!" Theo exclaimed. "Seriously, that will help them out a lot."
"We're hoping so," Bill said. "She's a special witch and she has a gift. I know how much she helped both you and Ginny at one time."
"I almost called her again the other day."
Bill raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
"I forgot his one year anniversary, Bill."
Bill gave Theo a sympathetic look. "That doesn't mean anything, Theo. It doesn't mean that you forgot about him in any way. It just means that you chose not to dwell on the day he died. It doesn't mean that you didn't love him."
Theo nodded. He was starting to realize that himself, but he still felt guilty. "Yeah, maybe you're right."
"You're coming to the Burrow for the holiday, right?"
"Yes, I promised your mum I would come over on the twenty-third."
"Good," Bill said. He squeezed his shoulder in reassurance. "But you're welcome any day before then as well. See you later."
Theo watched him head off and he said bye to a few other witches and wizards before he made his way out of the chambers. His eyes were looking for him before he could stop himself and when they found those blue ones trained on him, he swallowed. Okay, so he was a little more than attracted to him. That didn't mean anything.
Theo kept his eyes on Sebastian's blue ones as the Auror moved across the hall to pass him the cappuccino in his hand. "Thank you."
Sebastian nodded. "You're welcome. Can we talk?"
"More questions?" Theo asked, his voice coming out a little harsher than he expected.
Sebastian's eyes bored into his. "Just come with me."
Theo raised an eyebrow in surprise, but let the Auror take his arm and lead him from the Ministry. They headed into the Muggle sandwich stop that had become their usual place and sat down before Theo had even realized it had become their usual place. Merlin, if he wasn't positive the man was straight, he would think that they'd been having dates for the last three months.
But of course they weren't. They were more like interrogations that turned into conversations. Definitely not dates.
"Why do you always bring me here?" Theo asked.
Sebastian picked up the menu before he spoke. "Because it's lunch time and I'm hungry."
Theo frowned. "So? Why do I have to come with you?"
Sebastian carefully put down the menu. "You know things, Theo."
"No, I don't."
"Running into you on the weekend proved otherwise," Sebastian said, his voice lowering. "Your two best friends have been alive this whole time."
Theo opened his mouth and then closed it again.
"I've been working with the MIA since I left the Academy. I moved up quickly because of my skills and one of my skills has been to deduce when someone knows more than they're saying."
"Are you a Legilimens?"
"No," Sebastian said. "But I have studied behaviour and you have been very interesting in that way."
Theo frowned. "Are you saying that you knew this whole time?"
"No," Sebastian repeated. "I didn't know that they were still alive, not for sure, but you need to be more cautious in how you speak to people. Your wording was always in the present, Blaise is, Draco is, never was… it did make me think that you knew a hell of a lot more than you were saying. Look, I respect you. You're incredibly brave for taking on your father like you did at only sixteen. I can't imagine what it was like to grow up with him being a Death Eater and knowing that wasn't the world you wanted. I know you don't think you know things, but the stuff you've told me has helped me close four different cold cases for the DMLE because you provided me with new leads. The information you knew about Derrick, about some of the other Death Eaters, and about things your father was involved in… that information helped, Theo."
Theo licked his lips before he took a sip of his cappuccino. "And taking me to lunch after the Wizengamot sessions has helped with that?"
"It's gotten you to open up more," Sebastian said. "Now, why don't we order some food, on me, and you can answer a few more questions I have."
"What else could you possibly want to know?" Theo asked in exasperation.
Sebastian leaned forward across the table. "I want to know exactly how you're connected to the fae. Seeing you with Prince Tiernan left me with a lot of questions. I've heard your name associated with the court of Tara more than once. Are you… involved with him?"
"With Tiernan?" Theo asked in disbelief. "No."
"Well, he kissed you."
Theo blushed. "That was… he was teasing me."
Sebastian lifted a brow. "So, you're close friends then?"
Theo pursed his lips. "We're not close friends, we just… I know him."
Sebastian frowned. "Okay, well you obviously know him well enough to kiss him. Look, if you don't want to tell me then I'm not going to force it out of you, but I think that you could be an important asset to the fae. We need more of them in on mission plans and I think that you can help with that."
Theo sighed. He knew that Sebastian was right. The fae could be used more, but every time Theo thought of approaching them, his heart stopped in his chest. "No, it's… his brother, Prince Finley. Finn and I were…"
"Ah," Sebastian said, his fingers returning to the menu. "You were involved."
"Yes," Theo said. "For almost a year."
"And it ended… badly?" Sebastian asked, his eyes staring intently at the menu.
"He died."
"Fuck, I'm sorry," Sebastian said, his gaze meeting Theo's. "I had no idea. I heard someone from the royal family was killed a while back but I… I didn't know who."
Theo shrugged. "It's okay. Obviously you wouldn't know and… that day with Tiernan when you asked me… it was the one year anniversary of his death that weekend and Tiernan just wanted to check in on me."
"I'm very sorry, Theo."
"It was a long time ago," Theo said, shrugging. "Let's order something to eat."
"You loved him."
It wasn't a question. Theo stared down at the menu as he spoke. "More than I've ever loved anyone in my life. I thought that we were going to spend the rest of our lives together."
"Are you two ready to order?"
Theo looked up at the pretty blonde waitress and smiled. "Yes. Thank you. I'll have the Greek salad with chicken and glass of sauvignon blanc."
"I'll have the same," Sebastian said, his eyes on Theo. He waited until the waitress had left before he spoke again. "Tell me about him."
"Finn?"
"Yes," Sebastian said.
Theo shook his head. "You don't want to hear about my old boyfriend. There's nothing there that can be important to your case. I know who killed him and he's dead."
"No," Sebastian admitted, his fingers tapping on the table. "But you look like you need to tell me about him."
Theo hesitated, his eyes on Sebastian's blue ones. "Why?"
Sebastian leaned back in his chair. "Why not?"
Theo was completely perplexed by that. Did he need to talk about Finn? He looked up when the waitress brought them two glasses of wine and took a small sip.
"How did you meet him?" Sebastian asked. "How does one meet a fae anyway?"
"He saved my life," Theo whispered, the words escaping his lips before he could stop them.
Sebastian's lips curved. "Ah, the famous rescue move, it's a good one. What did you need saving from?"
Theo wrapped his hand around the stem of his wine glass. "My life hasn't been a pretty one at times. Being the son of a Death Eater is only the tip of the iceberg."
"Losing someone you love can't have been easy, but didn't your friend say you were dating someone new? Cornfoot, wasn't it? You've obviously moved on since Finn, haven't you?"
"Briefly," Theo said, surprised that the Auror remembered the name of his ex-boyfriend who he had only heard of in passing. "Look, Bas… I appreciate you thinking that I need to talk about this, but I don't know how telling you about the man I loved is going to help you."
"I didn't say it would," Sebastian said. "I just thought it might help you."
Theo looked at him in surprise. "Auror Arsehole can be nice. Who would have thought?"
Sebastian rolled his eyes. "I'm not a bloody arsehole. Look, you just seemed down last week and I didn't mean to add to that. If you want to talk about Finn and just you know, put his soul to rest or whatever, I'm a good listener. Otherwise, we can talk about something else."
Theo took another sip of his wine, but he didn't speak. He simply stared at the Auror, watching the way his blue eyes watched him, just waiting for him to talk. He looked at the unruly dark hair and the dark stubble gracing his face.
"Why are you being so nice to me?"
"I can be nice," Sebastian said.
Theo smirked. "Can you?"
Sebastian rolled his eyes.
Theo swallowed, his fingers twitching against his thigh under the table. "Look, I… I took Finn's death hard. He was murdered by Abraxas Malfoy right in front of me. They stabbed him with an iron blade and the poison… it was quick."
Sebastian's eyes softened. "I'm so sorry, Theo. I can't imagine how awful that must have been for you."
He nodded. "It was over a year ago now and the day came and I… I forgot about it. It didn't even register in my mind that he'd been gone for a year. Everyone keeps saying that's okay, that it's normal, that it means I've moved on and all I can think about is how horrible I feel because he meant so much to me. Finn was… he was the kindest soul I'd ever met. He reached out to me because he found out that I was taking care of his niece at Hogwarts. We started exchanging letters at first. I imagined that he was an older man, possibly fatherly and portly, so when I found out he was only nineteen, it was a bit of a shock. When I found out that he was interested in me, I was… amazed. Here was this beautiful fae warrior and he liked me for some reason."
Theo smiled at the waitress, thanking her for their food before he continued.
"So anyway, I… I didn't know that he was only nineteen and one day when I was in Hogsmeade, he um… he saved me from this bloke and we kissed and that was it, we were together. It was like a fairy tale, you know, the prince comes to save the one in distress. I sure felt like the damsel anyway."
Sebastian frowned. "He saved you from a bloke? Who?"
"That's… I was arguing with someone," Theo said, quickly. The last thing he wanted to get into was the nightmare that was Macmillan. "But Finn stepped in and helped diffuse the situation. He… he swept me off of my feet and I let him. He was my first real boyfriend and he gave me a promise ring."
Theo pulled the ring out from under his shirt.
"Sometimes I think that I should stop wearing it, but that feels like a betrayal to him and I don't know what to do about that. He was my world and I wanted the rest of my life to be with him. When he died, I spiralled. I pushed it down and started trying to find a way to cope with it. I drank. I… was full of self pity and it was my friends who ultimately helped me get my life back together. Another friend gave me a talk I didn't know I needed and I had friends who were around when I needed to vent."
Sebastian nodded. "I'm glad that you have friends who are there for you. Friends are important. Tell me more about Finn."
Theo did.
He found himself telling Sebastian everything. He spoke about Finn and their life together, meeting Finn's family and the things they did. He explained how Finn was the one who gave him the sword and how Finn and Tiernan had taught him how to use it. He explained about the Dara Knot stone that helped him practice and how he had come to depend on the sword as much as his wand if not more so.
When they finally finished eating and the waitress brought their bill, Theo realized he'd spent the entire time talking about Finn.
"Merlin, I'm sorry," Theo said. "I talked your ear off and completely wasted your time."
Sebastian shook his head. "It was no problem. Do you feel better?"
Theo started to say no, but he realized with sudden clarity that he did. He felt lighter in ways that he couldn't even explain. Sitting there and talking about Finn had been like he had finally let himself relax. His shoulders didn't feel so heavy and neither did his heart.
"Yeah, I do."
Sebastian's lips curved. "Then it wasn't a waste of time." He threw Muggle money down on the table before he stood up. "Think more on how the fae might be able to assist more or how you can bring them in. I'd love to hear some of your ideas. We'll talk in the new year, but if you need me before that, you have my card. Happy holidays, Theo."
Theo watched him head off to the Ministry, his eyes on his arse before he caught himself. Sebastian Kane was kind of a nice guy, he thought. His fingers played with the promise ring under his shirt as Blaise's words echoed in his mind. No, he and Draco were wrong. Kane was just doing his job, anyone could see that. If he'd really been interested in him, surely he would have asked him out by now. Right?
The man was clearly too obsessed with work to be interested in anything else and besides, a man who looked like Sebastian Kane did was most definitely straight. It was too damn bad he was so easy to fantasize about though. Theo adjusted himself before he stood up from the table and thought that it wasn't fair that just sitting there across from him had made him so hard. He had some last minute shopping to do and then presents to wrap.
He most definitely didn't have time to ponder the conundrum that was Sebastian Kane.
End Author's Notes:
Thanks to Sam for her help with my Hannah scene. Her help made the scene everything it was.
Thanks to Ella for the Russian phrase!
(Russian) Mater Bozhya = Mother of God
Thank you for reading and please review!