The day of the wedding finally dawned, and Ron and Harry were rudely awoken by Hermione dumping water onto them.
"Come on," she shouted, "Hurry up. We have only four hours to get ready!"
"Four hours," said Ron, not even bothering to get off his bed before waving his wand to get rid of the water. "Hermione, you have completely lost the plot? We don't need four hours to get ready. Call us when we have twenty minutes okay?"
Ron had staggered in very late, or quite early, depending on how you looked at it.
"No, Ron, Harry has to go to Neville's and get ready there, remember? He can't just show up then disappear. That is just rude."
"Besides, you have been sleeping all morning; I have been up for hours."
Harry heard Ron grumbled about having nothing to do with Harry getting ready, and personally he agreed, but he figured he was probably better off, since Ron had gone to bed very late.
"Hey, Ron, why did you come to bed so late?"
"Good party," he answered.
"Are you hung over?"
"Nah, Charlie gave me a potion, said it would fix me up. He was right too; I don't feel bad at all."
"Did you drink much?"
"Nope, just a few little glasses. Teeny, tiny, little glasses. Barely a mouthful."
"How many little glasses did you drink?"
"Um, lots?" Ron answered, with a grin.
Harry laughed and conjured another bucket of water onto him before Apparating downstairs to make some breakfast.
The trio ate a large meal and went over the plan for the day.
"So, Hermione and I go to the Burrow and wait for you there. You are going to Apparate to Diagon alley, Floo to Neville's, get ready, then Floo to the Burrow, right?" asked Ron.
"That's it."
"I still don't understand why you don't just get ready here and Apparate directly to the Burrow with us. I reckon you've been spending too much time with Mad-eye Moody."
"Honestly, Ronald, sometimes I think you say these things on purpose, just to exasperate me," declared Hermione.
"She's on to you, mate," said Harry seriously. "It's time to change tactics."
Hermione disappeared to start getting ready, while Ron and Harry finished breakfast and cleaned up. There was still plenty of time to play a few games of exploding snap while listening to the radio before they actually had to move.
"Right," said Harry, as one of his watch alarms (a roster crowing) went off. He grabbed his backpack and stood up. "I'm off. Don't get in her way and make sure you are ready on time, okay?"
"Yeah, yeah," answered Ron dismissively. "You just make sure to be careful and we'll catch you at the Burrow. Say howdy to Neville for us."
Harry applied his disguise before Apparating into the alley way behind the Leaky Cauldron. Neville had told him the name to say when he stepped into the flames, but he wasn't ready for what waited at the other end.
"Longbottom House," he said, stepping into the flames and closing his eyes, as usual, but instead of a few seconds of spinning mayhem and the inevitable sudden stop that almost always threw him to the ground, the spinning stopped, but the roar of the flames kept going.
Harry opened his eyes and found he was standing in a fireplace, surrounded by green flames, but he couldn't step forward into the room he could see dimly.
"Harry?" It was Neville's voice.
"Neville!" called Harry feeling slightly panicky. "Help, I am stuck!"
Neville walked into view and stared closely at Harry.
"It's the new security Gran had put on the Floo. You can't get through until somebody here authorises it. You look different, Harry."
"I am in disguise Nev. Now let me through, this is freaking me out."
Neville seem to think about it for a moment.
"What was the thing of mine you saved from Malfoy in our first year? No, wait! Everybody knows that story. I know. What did you put in the last drink you gave me?"
"Hair! I put my hair in it!"
Neville smiled and tapped the mantelpiece of the fire with his wand. Instantly Harry was thrown forward and landed face first on a thick mat.
"Thanks," he said, looking up at his friend.
"You're welcome, Harry. Do you realise that disguise isn't very good?"
"So I have been told," said Harry.
Neville nodded seriously, glad Harry already knew about the failings of his current look.
"Gran wants to say hello."
Harry hadn't been expecting this, but since Neville was once again doing Harry a massive favour, he knew it was not a big thing to do in return.
He nodded, removed his disguise, and went to meet the esteemed Mrs Longbottom senior.
He had briefly met her once before, in St Mungos, when he had been visiting Ron's dad. At that time she had come across to as a formidable woman and that impression was only reinforced after meeting her in her own home.
They shared some tea and she spoke with him about many things, especially the return of Voldemort and the 'current troubles', but also about Hogwarts and even Harry's parents, who Mrs Longbottom had known through their association with Neville's parents.
Harry mostly nodded and agreed, only occasionally venturing an opinion of his own when asked for it.
Neville sat quietly drinking his tea, and Harry got the impression he was used to being 'seen but not heard from'. Harry slipped a compliment about Neville into the conversation, and was rewarded with a huge smile from the shy boy.
"He is certainly growing into the man his father was," his Gran agreed.
Mrs Longbottom pointed to a paper on the table in front of her. It was the one Harry had seen in the car with Percy featuring him on the front page with Penelope.
"Tell me, Mr Potter," she said. "Have you really thrown you lot in with the Ministry then?"
Harry was torn. He didn't want to say anything that might compromise the charade Percy was undertaking, but he felt a strange need to impress Neville's Gran.
"Mrs. Longbottom," he started, feeling rather silly at trying to sound a bit formal. "I am sure you appreciate the need for some secrecy, especially in the current climate?"
"Of course," she said, obviously intrigued at Harry's answer.
"Then let me say just one thing – looks can be deceiving, and I know that you know better than to believe everything you read in the paper."
Mrs Longbottom looked penetratingly at Harry for a few seconds, and then smiled.
"Indeed, Mr Potter. I think I understand."
Harry's watch went off again (appropriately, a wedding anthem), and he apologised for having to take his leave of her to get ready to go. Neville took him to his room where a set of excellent quality dress robes had been laid out.
"Neville, you know if there is ever anything I can do for you, you just have to ask," he said honestly.
"Actually, Harry, there is one thing," Neville said, suddenly looking very serious. "When you find Bellatrix Lestrange, don't hesitate to kill her."
To say Harry was shocked would be an understatement.
"Neville you can't..."
"No, Harry. I know what I am asking. I intend on hunting her down myself, but the chances are you will come across her first, and you'll have a better chance anyway."
"I know you are going up against you-know-who, don't ask me how, but I do. When you get close to him, you are going to find her. I want you to promise me, if you get the chance, you will kill her. She doesn't deserve any mercy, and if you want to do something for me, do that."
Harry was flabbergasted.
"Don't think about it now, Harry," he said, handing over a small pouch. "Do what you have to do, but remember what I asked. When the time comes, don't feel guilty and don't hesitate. I don't want you to put yourself in any danger trying to get her, I just want you to take the opportunity if you get it, okay?"
Harry took the pouch; it contained a handful of hair.
"Yeah, okay, Neville," he said, looking the once nervous and shy boy in the eye. "I owe her one too, but, I'll help you track her down and we can both have a go at taking her out, okay?"
Neville smiled, and to Harry it appeared slightly feral.
"Even better," he agreed.
Harry stripped and dropped a few hairs into the hip flask he had brought with him before swallowing a mouthful. Soon the agony of transformation was over and he lay on the ground panting.
"Damn, Harry, I think you were right; it is harder to watch," said Neville.
"Not from where I am lying," Harry answered dryly.
Quarter of an hour later, Harry, was dressed in Neville's best dress robes, and looking rather handsome, for Neville that is.
"Hey, I scrub up not too bad!" laughed Neville, standing back to look at his duplicate.
"Nice robes, Nev. I have got to get myself a set of these."
The shimmering material made every movement result in a flowing pattern of reflection across the robes.
They joked for a while longer until another alarm went off on Harry's watch and it was time to leave. Neville took Harry back to the Floo, where Mrs. Longbottom was waiting.
She looked at Harry and smiled.
"Mr Potter, although I had my worries when Neville informed me of this plan, I must say that seeing you in those robes makes me want to force Neville to start frequenting something more formal than these frequent little rendezvous he keeps attending."
She smiled brightly, ignoring both Harry and Neville's involuntary blush at her compliment.
"Now, Mr Potter, I am sure you will conduct yourself in a manner that would make a Longbottom proud. After all, everything you do while wearing my Grandson's image reflects on my family. Please keep that in mind and behave accordingly."
"I will do my best, Mrs. Longbottom," answered Harry nervously.
Thanking them both again, he tossed a pinch of Floo powder into fire and stepped through to the Burrow.
Somebody he didn't know caught him as he fell out of the Floo at the other end.
"Whoa there big fella," said the voice of his saviour.
Harry disentangled himself and looked at the wizard. He was about Bill's age, and didn't have red hair, so Harry guessed it was one of the groomsmen or a guest.
Ron had told Harry the male half of the bridal party would be leaving from the Burrow, but the idea of somebody other than a Weasley or somebody else he already knew being there hadn't really sunk in.
"Now, what's your name then?" the wizard asked, holding up a parchment and a quill.
"Har- ah,' Harry coughed to cover his near blunder. "Neville, Neville Longbottom."
"Right," said the man, checking off Neville's name from the list. "Head out that door and follow the noise until you get to where the crowd is. The rest of the people leaving by Portkey will be out there. Next one leaves in twenty minutes."
Harry proceeded outside and joined a crowd of people that included Fred and George Weasley. He was greeted loudly by the twins and something in their manner suggested to Harry that they knew exactly who he was. Ron's other brother, Charlie, appeared to be keeping his distance, making Harry even more suspicious about who knew he was there.
The twins took him on a whirlwind introduction tour, bombarding him with names of cousins, second cousins and their siblings, effectively preventing him from remembering even one. There was an odd smattering of red haired individuals that, in total, made an inordinate number of them in one place.
Harry was introduced by the duo as 'Nev, a classmate of Ron's and friend of the family'. The twins even managed to mention that Neville had fought in the Department of Mysteries as well as the battle where Bill was injured. This brought some unwanted attention that made Harry squirm, but had the twins smiling broadly as they sung his praises.
A quick search around revealed Ron and Hermione had not arrived yet. With only a few minutes to go for the Portkey, Harry was starting to get worried. He was about to split from the group and go looking for them when George pointed out a well-dressed couple walking arm in arm down the lane towards them.
"There you go Nev, nothing to worry about. They just took the scenic route," he said.
It was then that Harry realised the handsome couple was Ron and Hermione. Their clothes and the casual way that they were walking, totally engrossed in conversation with each other, made them look so different that Harry hadn't recognised his two best friends.
Hermione had her hair up again, the same, and yet somehow different, as the style she had used the only other time Harry had seen her dressed up. She was wearing a scintillating gown that looked like it had been wound around her body, starting from an ankle and ending above one shoulder. It was a Muggle style, but it definitely suited her, and matched Ron well.
The twins had followed Harry's request and bought Ron new dress robes, but they must have spent a lot more than Harry had intended because the cut and fit turned his friend into a well built, muscular looking young man instead of the lanky teenager that Harry still thought him.
Of course, that could have been because of the easy air which he was walking with; like he had nothing more important on his mind than the pretty young woman on his arm.
Harry thought that might actually have been the case, and had to fight down a sudden unexpected surge of jealousy. He turned away, ashamed at feeling something so horrible about his friend's happiness, knowing he should be happy for them, not left out.
By the time they joined the crowd, he had managed to regain his composure and sincerely compliment them both. Hermione blushed at Harry's honest words of praise, but Ron looked ready to burst with pride, although Harry wasn't sure if it was at his comments about Ron himself, or his comments about Hermione.
When time came to leave, they all gathered around and placed a hand on a large, elaborate water fountain that hadn't been in the Weasley's yard before. Harry looked on with trepidation; his experiences with Portkey crash landings were becoming legendary, and he was a bit worried about the other guests, who were all also well dressed. Falling over and causing some sort of a mass pile up of wedding guests would be horribly embarrassing.
"Don't worry, mate," Fred said, coming to stand next to him. "We've got you covered."
"Yeah, Nev," said George, taking the other side. "We'll be your bumpers."
Harry had just enough time to smile his gratitude before he felt the pull of the Portkey and was once again thrown into a twirl of colours and a rush of wind.
It went on for longer than his previous journeys, and Harry was glad that his hand was stuck to the fountain, because he was sure he would have let go long before the journey was over otherwise.
On either side of him, frequently banging into him as they twirled about, Harry could hear the twins whooping with delight.
Finally he felt solid ground appear beneath him. He staggered, but the firm hands of Fred and George kept him upright.
"Careful there, Nev," Fred said. "Can't have you falling over now, can we?"
"At least," added George, "not until we get a few drinks into you!"
Harry smiled gratefully and looked at the other guests. None of them appeared to be too shook up over the long trip; Hermione even still had one arm linked in Ron's.
They were standing on at the bottom of a low hill in a clearing. Surrounding them, immense trees towered into the sky, dark and forbidding. Harry was reminded of the Forbidden forest at Hogwarts, especially the way the shadows thickened so quickly that you could not see more than a few feet beyond the tree line, but these trees were much larger and looked to be of a different type.
A circle of standing stones, each larger than Hagrid in both height and width, crowned the small hill they were standing on. It resembled ancient druidic circles Harry had read about and seen pictures of in text books, but was in much better condition that the half ruined ones he had seen.
As Harry got closer, he noticed there was an altar in the exact centre of the circle, and a semi circle of chairs had been set up in front. A long red carpet ran from the altar down between the chairs to one of the stones.
Bill, two other men, and one young boy stood in front of the altar, looking rather nervous. They were wearing dark dress robes that reminded Harry of Ron's unfortunate ones, frilly lace and all, but didn't appear as outrageous or old fashioned as the ones Ron had endured.
Bill's horribly scarred face looked much better than when Harry had last seen him a few weeks ago. Although the marks were cruel and deep, they somehow lent ruggedness to the young man's face that had not been there before.
Harry could make out Mr and Mrs Weasley, and a few other people Harry took to be Fleur's family already sitting in the chairs, but they were still mostly empty.
Never having been to a Muggle wedding, let alone a wizarding one, he made sure to stick close to Ron and Hermione, determined to follow their lead.
The brightly dressed wedding guests were chatting loudly as they trudged up the hill and took their places on seats that had been set up in the gaps between the stones. Each group of chairs was only three rows deep, and a dozen people could sit side by side, but there was nothing to indicate if there was a particular place they should be sitting in.
Everywhere he looked he could see bouquets of pale flowers held together by ribbon. The chairs, the ropes surrounding each group of chairs, even the stones and altar were sporting tasteful settings.
"Bride or Groom?" a small wizard dressed in very severe robes asked Harry as he approached the chairs.
"Sorry?"
"Are you with the bride's family, or the grooms?" the man asked with the air of somebody who was sick of repeating themselves.
"Er, groom."
"Very well, over there then," the man said pointing out a set of chairs.
Ron stopped and turned to Harry.
"Er. Sorry mate, I have to go sit with the family in the middle bit," he said looking apologetic. "Do you mind taking Hermione for me?" and he held out the arm she was holding onto, making Hermione step forward slightly.
"Ron," protested Hermione, but a smile curled her lip. "I do not need to be escorted to my chair."
"Sorry, Hermione," Ron said smiling. "But a women as beautiful as you should never be left alone."
Hermione gasped at Ron's astonishing words, and Harry again felt a pull of jealousy that he immediately suppressed.
"I would be honoured," he said, smiling as he held out his arm for her to take, which she did with only the slightest hesitation.
"My, my, boys," she said teasingly moved to Harry's side. "What has happened to you both; manners and eloquence? I think I should have played apparition tag much earlier if this is the result."
Both Ron and Harry blushed, causing Hermione to grin even wider.
Ron walked into the circle and took a seat behind his parents while Harry and Hermione found second row seats in the group the small wizard had indicated. The rest of the seats filled up quickly and the noise level rose as people chatted. Hermione explained the left and right seating arrangements, and told him more about ancient stone circles than he ever wanted to know, but listening to her helped him to not think too much about what was coming.
Suddenly the crowd went very quiet and Harry saw an ancient looking wizard, with a long white bread that could have rivalled Dumbledore's for length, and an equally ancient looking witch, who somehow still managed to look beautiful, standing in front of the altar next to Bill, facing the semi circle of chairs which were now fully occupied except for two chairs.
"Veela," Hermione whispered to Harry, explaining the older woman's unnatural beauty.
Harry nodded, having already guessed as much when he felt a strange twisting in his eyes every time he looked at some people in the crowd, and turned his attention back to the man who appeared to be waiting for something.
Soft, music filled the air. It sounded like pipes and birds singing in harmony, but had a grandeur to it that made Harry's heart sing. Everybody stood up and Bill looked even more nervous.
Suddenly a bright light flashed in front of the stones. At first Harry thought it was one of the many cameras people had brought with them, but then he saw a beautiful, young girl dressed in a simple, but elegant white dress, had appeared in the flash. Her hair was held up in a high bun that was adorned in pale flowers, and she held a bouquet in both hands in front of her.
She started walking sedately down the carpet in time with the soft music. After she had gone a few steps, the light flashed again and a second woman appeared. This one was slightly older, and even more beautiful, despite being attired almost identically to the first girl. Her hair was firebrand red.
"Ginny," Harry gasped, recognising her.
His chest hurt, his mouth suddenly went dry, and his breath caught in his lungs. For a moment he felt his head swim as a rush of feeling overwhelm him.
Something warm grasped his hand and brought him back to earth. He looked down to see Hermione had taken hold of it. She gave a knowing, sad, smile then squeezed his hand briefly. At that moment, Harry had never been more grateful to have such a good friend.
A third woman had joined Ginny and the young girl, who Harry now realised must be Gabriel, Fleur's young sister, just as she reached the altar. Gabriel moved to the side of the old couple opposite from Bill and moved down so that she was standing as far away as the young boy on Bill's side.
Ginny walked up and moved to stand next to her, just as another flash indicated the arrival of Fleur on the arm of her stately looking father.
Harry couldn't help gasp at the sight of her.
She was dressed in almost the same style as the three other women, but her gown was made of a shimmering, translucent material so delicate and sheer that it clung to her like a thick mist. Harry had the undeniable impression she was actually walking naked up the isle, and she must have also turned on all of her Veela charm because he could not pull his eyes away.
Hermione suddenly dug her fingers into his hand painfully, grabbing his attention. He darted a questioning look at her, but she was watching the wedding as if nothing had happened; she had hurt him to break the Veela spell.
"Thanks," he muttered, earning a slight nod and a smile.
Around him, Harry noted the vacant expressions of other men, and sometimes, dark looks from women. He took the opportunity to take a quick swig from his hip flask, grimacing at the taste of the Polyjuice. He hoped nobody noticed, but had prepared a story about it being a special medicine, in case anybody asked. The alarms on his watch had been set as reminders too.
When she reached the altar, the magnificent bride stopped and waited, facing the old man. Harry noted Bill was now grinning foolishly.
"Welcome!"' the old man called out in a deep musical voice, holding his arms wide in an inviting manner.
"Welcome!" replied the crowd, Harry quickly joining in. Hermione was perfectly on queue, obviously having expected it.
"Who brings a daughter to this place to be wed?" he asked.
"I do," answered Fleur's father, his own deep baritone voice ringing out loudly.
"And who asks for her hand?"
"I do," said Bill strongly, despite still grinning like an idiot.
"Do you come here of your own free will to be joined with this man?" the old man asked looking at Fleur.
"I do," she answered, and every man sighed at the beautiful sound of her voice.
"Then leave your father and take you place by his side."
Instead of Fleur moving, Fleur's father held her linked arm out and Bill stepped forward to take his place. Her father turned and walked back to sit with the others in the semicircle of chairs.
As he sat down, the people standing outside the circle of stones all sat down, and the rest of the Bridal party moved to take their places next to Bill and Fleur.
The old man raised his arms again.
"Great Spirit we ask for your Blessing on this, our sacred ceremony…"
Harry found himself staring at the back of Ginny's head. He tuned out the rhythmic chanting of the ceremony and kept thinking about her, about the short time they had been together, the years he has missed out before that, and Mr Weasley's words of advice. Was he making a mistake? His thoughts started going around in circles as he once again tried to balance the danger of being with her against the pain of being apart.
Suddenly he became aware that the wedding party had turned sideways, with Bill and Fleur facing each other while the others stood behind them in a slight curve so that they could all see the proceedings.
Bill was holding one of Fleur's hands in his own, and had the ring sitting on the edge of her finger, ready to put it on.
"Repeat after me," intoned the old man in his deep resonant voice.
"By the light of the sun the, the moon, and the stars,"
Bill repeated the words in a strong clear voice.
"With the blessings of all the earth, north, south, east, and west,"
"In times of sickness, in times of health,"
"In good times and bad,"
"I pledge to you my protection, strength, and understanding,"
"And all the love I am able to give,"
"Until my soul leaves this world for the next,"
"This I swear."
With the final words, Bill slid the ring onto her finger. Harry heard a few soft sobs from the people inside and out of the circle, and noticed Hermione dabbing her eyes with a hanky.
The old woman stepped forward and repeated almost exactly the same ceremony with Fleur, who spoke softly and with a few sobs of her own. Something didn't look right when they spoke though. Their lips appeared to be moving differently to the sound he was hearing, as if he was watching a foreign television show at Mrs Figgs that had been dubbed into English. There was also a soft glow of magic surrounding the couple and the wedding party as they spoke.
The woman stepped back and the old man again held out his arms.
"Have you heard the vows?" he asked the audience.
"We have!" came the strong reply.
"Do you accept that they have made honest and true promises?"
"We do!" chorused the audience.
"They let the couple seal their promises with a kiss!"
Bill smiled as he lifted the thin veil from Fleur's face, and stepped forward to deliver a solid kiss. She wrapped her hands around his neck and returned it in kind, and the crowd cheered.
When they finally broke apart, both were wearing huge smiles.
"Ladies and Gentlemen," the old man called out. "I present to you, Mr and Mrs. William Weasley."
The crowd cheered again and stood up as Bill and Fleur walked, hand in hand, down the red carpet. Ron and his brothers were vigorously throwing what Harry took to be rice over the pair, who were soon followed by the bridal party, each pairing off with their opposite to walk side by side down the carpet. As they reached the stone circle, each couple disappeared in a brief flash of light.
"Where have they gone?" Harry asked Hermione after watching Ginny walk arm in arm with the second groomsman through the portal.
Hermione was carefully wiping her eyes, trying to get the tears without smudging her make up.
"Usually there is a room nearby, sometimes it is even under the hill it's self. In ancient times there was more ceremony to undertake, but now days they usually relax, take some photographs and give the guests a chance to get to the reception."
People were jostling past them, getting out of the chairs and heading back down the hill, so they moved off to one side and were joined by Ron.
"Wow, that was great, wasn't it?" he asked excitedly. "That was the best wedding ceremony ever!" he said, almost jumping up and down on the spot.
Harry laughed at his friend's antics. He seemed to be on an emotional high.
"What's wrong with you, Ron?"
"Nothing!" he answered exuberantly. "I just feel great! Don't you?"
Then he grabbed Hermione in a hug, lifted her off the ground, and twirled her around in the air. Hermione shrieked with laughter.
"Put me down, Ron!" she said. "It's the blessing - the part of the ceremony where magic was used to bless the wedding. It makes you feel good!"
"I don't care," he said, putting her down gently. "Let's go party!"
Then he grabbed them by the hand and almost dragged them down to the crowded fountain Portkeys.
"Come on, come on," he said, drumming both hands on the fountain in impatience. "Let's go-go-go."
His enthusiasm was infectious, and Harry found himself looking forward to the party.
"Everybody grab a hold," said the same small man from before.
"You go in, three, two, one-"
Once again Harry was sent twirling uncontrollably to an unknown destination.
When the ground came up to meet him, he kept a firm grip on the fountain and was only driven to his knees instead flying loose out of control.
Ron laughed and bounced up and down. "This is great!"
Harry stood up and looked around, they were back in the garden at the Burrow, but it had been completely redecorated. So much so in fact, that if it hadn't been for the house itself, Harry would have sworn they were someplace else.
Richly decorated circular tables and large dining chairs filled up a huge area in front of an even more done up long, square table. More of the same flowers that Harry had noted at the wedding were attached to everything, and larger versions, with lit candles sticking out the top, sat as centrepieces on the tables.
Strings of fairy lights hung from trees and covered the walls of the Burrow making it glow like a medieval castle at night. The fairy's seemed to be quite happy as they sat or swung along the enchanted string, nibbling on the sugar it had been coated with.
Dozens of life sized ice sculptures depicting various magical animals surrounded the dining area, and a dance floor easily large enough to hold all the guests ran off in the distance to one side. Candles floated on unseen currents through the air, reminiscent of the ones in the Hogwarts main hall.
"Drink sir?" asked a squeaky voice from the vicinity of Harry's elbow.
Harry looked down to find a House-elf holding a tray filled with various glasses of drinks.
"Ah, yes thanks, a butterbeer," he asked. The elf passed a glass to Harry then turned to Hermione.
"Drink madam?"
Harry saw Hermione frown and open her mouth to speak, and he decided to step in.
"Hermione, please? Not tonight?" he asked, giving a pleading look. "For Bill and Fleur?"
She looked at him and narrowed her eyes.
"Don't try and give me that puppy-dog look of yours mister - you are wearing the wrong face for it to work properly," she said sternly, but then smiled brightly.
"A light wine please," she told the elf, who handed her a drink and moved on.
"Where's Ron?" Harry asked, just as Ron suddenly appeared, grabbing Hermione by the hand and starting to tug her along.
"You have got to come and look at this," he said. "Excellent, drinks!" he added snatching a glass from the tray as he passed it.
Harry laughed and followed his friends. Hermione was forcing Ron to slow down, apparently fearing for her shoes, if her comments were anything to go by.
Ron took them to every corner of the yard and pointed out every feature, from the tiny old record player that was playing soft music that could be heard throughout the area, to the hedge maze that had been added for the few younger guests, and probably some adults, to play in.
Harry was astounded at how much had been done in the couple of hours they had been missing.
"It was all setup somewhere else," Ron told him. "All they had to do was move the whole thing over and make room for it here."
"Why is it here?" asked Hermione. "I thought it was going to be at some secret location in a castle?"
Ron laughed, pointing at the Burrow. "It is!"
"Mum insisted on having it here," he told them. "She even cooked some of the food!"
"I couldn't tell you both of course; had to be super secret. I only found out myself by accident when Bill was talking about changing the wards around the house to be more secure and to hide it all better from the Muggles. He asked some of his goblin workmates to help, and ended up with a dozen of them on a sort of loan."
"Invited them all to the wedding of course, since he and Fleur both work with them, but they said those rituals are sacred to them and they didn't think it would be fair to go to his when he couldn't come to theirs. Bit nutty, if you ask me, but that's goblins for you."
For a moment, Harry had forgotten about the war, about the fact that there were probably people planning to disrupt the wedding simply because the Weasleys were a pure blood family that associated with Muggleborns. Immediately he found himself looking around the yard, trying to spot any changes that had been made for security reasons, but everything was so different it was impossible to be sure.
Ron introduced Hermione and Harry to dozens of people. Harry was sure he had met some of them before when the twins had done the honours, but they all shook hands and greeted each other politely, making him guess that they had probably forgotten who he was too. It made a nice change from the usual Boy-Who-Lived stares and whispers he could have expected if he had been wearing his own face.
While they mingled, Harry looked around, trying to spot Aurors. He noticed a couple of people who were dressed like wedding guests, unobtrusively moving around the perimeter and through the crowd. He thought he might have been mistaken, until he spotted a golden wand similar to the ones used at the Ministry to check incoming people.
It was tucked inside the sleeve of a wizard, and he would occasionally move his arm up or down somebody. It was done very discretely, as part of reaching for a drink or after having dropped something, but it happened often enough to confirm Harry's guess; undercover Aurors were mixed in with the crowd.
He was worrying that they would detect his Polyjuiced state and jump to the wrong conclusion, and was about to say something to Hermione, when a familiar voice greeted him from behind.
"Wotcher, Nev," said a young, blonde haired woman.
"Tonks?" he asked.
"Yep, told you I was going to be here on special duty!"
Harry relaxed. He had forgotten about Tonks. "Boy, I am really glad to meet you here, Tonks."
"'Of course you are," she smiled. "Promised to keep an eye on you, did I?"
Soon the trio, now a foursome with Tonks, had taken over a table not too from the front. They were sharing with the twins, who had elected not to bring dates.
"Does funny things to a girl's brain, weddings do," declared Fred, ignoring the glares Hermione shot him at that statement.
"Yep, makes them go all teary and get strange ideas," agreed George.
"Weird thoughts of staying home at night," added Fred.
"And having romantic dinners,"
"And starts them wanting to hear icky, sticky, lovey, dovey noises."
"Enough to put a man off his soup it is."
"Not to mention that it severely cramps your style when it comes to improving international ties. You know - better communication and such."
"Indeed fair brother, and there is definitely some communicating desperately needed over there," said George nodding his head towards some tables that contained several beautiful girls, probably relations or friends of Fleur.
Eventually the wedding party arrived and there were several rounds of speeches and formalities between scrumptious courses delivered by house-elves. The best man shared funny stories from Bill's Hogwarts days (including one involving trying to break the wards on the teacher's staff room) that made them all laugh, but Harry kept finding himself watching the bridal table.
No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't take his eyes off Ginny. She seemed to be enjoying herself, talking and laughing with her partner and Fleur's sister Gabriel. Once he thought he saw her looking at him, but it happened so quickly he passed it off as wishful thinking.
The Bride and Groom visited every table, making sure to spend time speaking each guest. When they came to Harry's table, Fleur gave him a big hug and whispered into his ear.
"It is good you have come tonight 'Arry," she said. "Even if it is in anuzer's body. Gabriel is very upset when we told her you were not coming."
Bill shook Harry's hand firmly.
"Thanks for coming," he said. "Ron tells me you want to learn a bit about curse breaking. I'll send an owl when we get back, okay?"
Harry agreed, caught by surprise at the generous offer, especially since he couldn't remember saying any such thing to Ron!
While he had Bill to himself, he finally got a chance to give them his present without everyone witnessing it.
"Bill, I didn't know what to get you both, so I hope you don't mind…" he said, handing over a silver-green, Moke skin purse he had picked up during his trip to Diagon alley.
Bill got a curious expression on his face as he accepted the purse, before recognising it for what he was. A look of surprise suddenly sprung up as he weighed it in his hands.
"It's just a little something to help you get started, you know," said Harry feeling a bit awkward. "Hermione said it was acceptable to give money, when you don't know what to get, and I was really stuck-"
"Har-er-Neville," said Bill cutting him off. "It's fine, more than fine in fact. I was just surprised at how much is in here!"
Seeing Harry's confused expression he explained. "I work for a bank run by goblins, there are certain skills you have to learn. Skills like being able to tell how much is in a purse without counting it. Unless I am very much mistaken, there is quite a bit in here."
Harry squirmed in embarrassment. Deciding how much to give the happy couple had been a very hard thing to do, especially since he hadn't wanted to let Ron know, and so couldn't ask for advice. He had even kept Hermione pretty much in the dark, just in case it slipped out. In the end, he decided to err on the side of generosity, and filled the purse until it couldn't hold anymore. It had barely made a dent in the heap he had taken from his vault.
"What can I say? Thank you, thank you very much," said Bill smiling, and his time he dragged Harry into a hug. "You have done so much for my family; don't forget we are all here for you too."
"You are welcome, and thanks again for inviting me," Harry answered, relieved that he had not made a mistake with his decision to give money instead of a 'real' present.
The twins also made their rounds, sowing mayhem wherever they went. Bags of Canary-creams and Turkey-delights were spread near and far, with appreciative squawks and accompanying laughs, as whole tables would suddenly erupt in feathers within minutes of their visit.
Mrs Weasley didn't seem at all upset with her troublesome boys, rather the opposite really, Harry thought. Time and time again he saw her laughing as guests, including Fleur's rather severe looking parents, turned into various animals, or changed into interesting colours. She also seemed to be enjoying the prompt drink service of the house-elves and was positively tipsy when she finally managed to make her way over to Harry for a traditional back-breaking hug.
"Don't be a stranger," she said, wiping a tear from her eyes. "You must come and visit for a while, once all the fuss has died down."
Harry wasn't totally sure if she was referring to the wedding or the war, but he appreciated her not making an issue out of his absence, at least, not tonight.
Mr Weasley also had been into the spirit of the occasion, so to say. It came as no surprise to overhear the balding man discussing everything Muggle with several other aging read-heads who Harry assumed to be related.
When the dancing started, Ron, who had calmed down significantly from his earlier overexcitement, surprised Harry and stunned Hermione when he stood up and asked her for a dance.
Harry watched his two friends happily for a few songs, before Tonks dragged him out too.
"Don't you have to work or something?" he asked, trying to get out of it.
"This is working tonight, Neville," she said, forcing him onto the dance floor and putting his arms and hands in the appropriate places.
"But I can't dance," he protested.
"Too late," she said simply. "You already are."
She directed him around the dance floor, helping him perform respectably, (which was surprising, since Harry had never considered Tonks to be particularly gifted when it came to balance and movement) until they came across Ron and Hermione.
"May I cut in?" she asked Hermione.
Hermione smiled and Ron looked a bit unsure.
"Of course you can!" Hermione answered, taking the decision away from Ron. Then Harry was dancing with her while Tonks whirled Ron away.
It was actually quite pleasant dancing with Hermione. He didn't feel as nervous, and found that when he relaxed, he enjoyed it.
They talked and joked as they moved around, avoiding subjects that would upset the special moment, until Ron returned and cut in to take Hermione back.
Except he wasn't dancing with Tonks anymore, he was dancing with Ginny.
Before Harry could protest, Ron and taken Hermione away, leaving Harry facing his former girlfriend unsupported. She looked just as uncomfortable as he felt.
Gathering his famed Gryffindor courage up, Harry stepped forward and smoothly took her into his arms. After a brief hesitation, she accepted him, and they began to dance silently.
"Ginny-" he started to say.
"Don't," she said, cutting him off. "Just dance, just hold me and dance, just for a little while."
So he did, but not just for a little while. The song finished, and the next one, and the one after that, and still they danced. Slowly they grew comfortable, and began to really enjoy the silent, rhythmic movement.
Ginny sighed and rested her head against his shoulder.
Harry just stayed silent and enjoyed her company. The flowery scent of her hair he had come to know so well just a few weeks before filled his thoughts and made his heart ache.
The night wore on, but they didn't notice. Others watching from the sidelines commented on how surprisingly good a couple the pair made, but they never heard, immersed as they were in silent presence of each other.
"Do you have any idea how often I have dreamed of a moment like this?" Ginny asked, without raising her head off his shoulder.
Harry didn't dare answer, he figured his voice would probably crack and make any answer sound stupid, even if he did know what to say.
"Since the first wedding I ever remember," she said, "all I wanted was to grow up to marry the Boy-Who-Lived."
"Seems silly now, a childish little girls fantasy, but it's true. I sat on the edge of the dance floor and watched people whirling each other around, and I dreamed that some day it would be me and you."
"Of course, we were actually the bride and groom..." She gave a little snort of laughter, making Harry smile.
"I remember Bill, picking me up off the floor. He took me out and danced with me, and promised me that one day it would be my turn and I would look even better than that Bride."
Harry didn't know how much more he could take.
"Tell me something Har-Neville. Is it ever going to be me? Will my fantasy ever come true?"
He wanted to say he didn't know, that he couldn't make that promise, but he also wanted to do it; to promise her everything she had ever wanted.
"Don't answer," she said, lifting her head away to look at his face. "Just look me in the eyes; I'll know."
Harry looked deep into her eyes, and knew he couldn't say no.
"I can see it's you, you know?" she said. "Don't ask me how, but when I look into those eyes, I can see you in there."
"And I can see your answer."
"I'll come back, I promise," Harry finally managed to croak out.
"No, Harry," she said, a small smile curving the corners of her mouth. "You've never left."
Then she leaned in, closed her eyes, and kissed him. He kissed her back, refusing to think about the fact she was actually kissing the face of Neville Longbottom. It went on for a long time and made him start to feel light headed with the force of the raw emotion and tenderness coursing through them both.
Suddenly the night sky lit up as Fred and George set off their best fireworks. All dancing stopped as everybody watched a truly impressive display that went on for many long minutes, but Harry and Ginny missed the first few, being more involved with each other at the particular point in time.
Finally breaking from their kiss, Harry stood next to Ginny, holding her hand. He occasionally stole glimpses of her smiling and laughing as giant fireworks knights battled gigantic dragons, and brightly lit pixies enacted a wedding scene that ended with the bride hitting the groom over the head and dragging him away.
After the final, ear-shattering climax turned night into day for seconds, a simple advert for Weasleys' Wildfire Whiz-bangs hung in the sky, and the crowd showed their appreciation of Fred and George's products enthusiastically. The twins bowed theatrically and began handing out business cards to all and sundry.
Soon after that, all the guests made a long, double line starting at the dance floor and ending near the house. They held their wands above their heads and sprayed sparks over to the person standing opposite, forming an archway of sparkling light. Bill and Fleur ducked under and walked quickly through the magical tunnel to a winged horse drawn carriage that whisked them away into the night sky to the cheers of the revellers.
As the fabulous ride left the ground and made one circle of the reception, Fleur tossed her bouquet back into the crowd where a very surprised looking Tonks caught it.
Next thing Harry knew, the party was winding down and people were leaving.
"I had better go," he told Ginny.
She nodded and silently walked with him to join the queue of people using the Floo to get home, holding his hand the whole way.
When it was his turn, he gave her a long hug.
"See you soon," he whispered into her ear.
"Please," she answered, and slipped a flower from her hair into his hand.
"Longbottom House," he said walking into the flames, not daring to look back as he left behind the person he most wanted to be with in the whole world.
Neville was asleep in a lounge chair near the Floo. He had waited up to let Harry back in; a very thoughtful thing to do, Harry thought.
"I figured you might have had a bit to drink and wouldn't be able to make it to your home," he told Harry. "So I had the house-elf make up a spare bed for you."
Harry thanked him, but said he was fine to head home. He did stay for a cup of tea while waiting for the Polyjuice to wear off, though. He spent the time telling his friend everything he could remember about the wedding, including once nearly forgetting to top up on the potion in time, despite the loud alarms of his watch.
"I can't believe she was naked," Neville exclaimed, seemingly for the tenth time.
"She wasn't, well not technically. Apparently their tradition is for everybody to have been naked, but they compromised."
Neville looked terrified. "If it had been, you know I wouldn't have let you use my shape, don't you?"
Harry laughed and told Neville it wouldn't have been a problem, since Harry would not have gone.
"But, since it's not your body, nobody would really have been seeing you naked, right?" asked Neville thoughtfully.
"Still would have felt that way though!" argued Harry.
They joked about some of the other possibilities presented by Polyjuice, and Neville told Harry stories about other weddings he had been to.
Harry was impressed at the scope and sheer number of the other boy's experiences.
"It's a bit of a pure blood thing," he admitted. "Since there aren't that many families left, you tend to get invited to all the weddings of even the most distant relatives."
"Gran is always very strict about which ones she attends. She never goes to any that have Dark Families in attendance."
"Wouldn't think that left you many," said Harry.
"You wouldn't think so, but it seems like the lighter cross blood families tend to have more children, where as the dark pure blood ones only have one or two."
"Maybe they will inbreed themselves to extinction then," said Harry.
"Here's to that," toasted Neville, holding up his teacup.
Harry underwent the uncomfortable sensation of changing back to himself a short time later, much to Neville's disgust as he failed to get away before the change started.
Before leaving Harry had one other thing to ask Neville. Something one of the twins had said made Harry think of it, although he couldn't remember what it was.
"Neville, I think you should try to get a few people from the D.A. together to practice and train. I am probably not going to be around much, but if you can get Ginny and Luna and contact some others, you could find a place and practice. If we are going to go after Bellatrix, we are probably going to need some help, and everyone needs to learn how to defend themselves."
Neville gave Harry the oddest of smiles, like he had a secret joke he wasn't sharing.
"That's a great idea Harry. I'll write some letters tomorrow."
Back at Grimmauld place, Harry lay in his bed twirling the flower in his hand. Sleep was a long time coming, but when it did, it was filled with pleasant dreams and flowery scents.