On the day of the Puddlemere match, the weather found itself to be windy and cold. Harry found himself entering the stadium only minutes before the Quaffle was to be released, having arrived an hour previously and spending that time walking in circles around the outside perimeter. He had made sure to wait as long as he could to enter, so as to keep the surprise as long as possible. He would have hated to casually run into Ginny while she was warming up. He'd gone this far, he might as well keep it up to the end.
He shoved his freezing hands into the pockets of the large jacket he had worn due to the chilly wind, but the second his hand landed in his pocket, he couldn't help but feel the small box that he had placed in there just hours before. Just as he had suspected, he had been completely hopeless when it came to picking out rings; thankfully, Hermione seemed to know exactly what she was doing. The ring he had ended up with—after inspecting it three thousand times between when he had bought it and today—seemed so perfect for Ginny that he almost couldn't see why he hadn't seen it immediately.
"Harry!" said a small voice somewhere near. He looked up to see a little blonde boy with bright blue eyes running towards him. No matter what he looked liked, Harry always knew when it was Teddy.
"Hey, buddy," Harry said, picking him up. He smiled at Andromeda once he noticed her following her approaching, her arms filled with popcorn.
She smiled. "Glad to see you made it."
"Yeah," he said with a nervous smile.
"Are you nervous?" she asked.
"About the game?" Teddy asked innocently. "Grams, you know that Holyhead will beat them. I told you that already!"
"So you did," she said as she gave him a quick tickle. "I was just curious how Harry felt about it."
"He knows they'll win, too," Teddy said obviously. "He's told me."
Harry smiled as he placed Teddy back down on the ground and looked at Andromeda. "Just a little."
"I don't think you should be," she said, laying a comforting hand on his arm. "Oh, and you were very good about the secret, Harry. Ginny doesn't have any idea. She was going on earlier about how happy she is to see you home."
Harry smiled, just as Andromeda gestured for Teddy to follow her towards their seats.
"Why isn't Harry coming?" Teddy asked with a puzzled expression. He was glancing between Harry and his grandmother.
"I'll be over in a little bit," Harry said as he bent down and leveled himself with Teddy's eye line. "I've just got to go and say hi to someone. Cheer loud for me, would you?"
"Okay," he said once Andromeda took his hand.
"Good luck, Harry," Andromeda said. "That is, if I don't see you before."
"What's he need luck for?" Teddy asked.
She smiled down at his little blonde head. "If only you knew."
Harry grinned as he watched Andromeda and Teddy disappear around a corner and out of sight. It was in that moment that the crowd suddenly erupted into a loud cheer, which made him realize that the match had started. He smiled and threw on a Holyhead Harpies cap with the intention of hiding for the time being. Now that the game had started, he wasn't worried about Ginny recognizing him, but rather everyone else recognizing him. Once other people recognized him, it was only a matter of time before the entire stadium got wind of him being here.
He walked out into the stadium to view the action when he was blinded by the bright lights from above. As he managed to get his eyes to adjust to the light, he glanced through the crowd directly in front of him in search of Hermione. She had owled him earlier that morning to tell him that she would be sitting in this section tonight and, although it took him several seconds, he soon noticed her bushy hair bouncing up and down. He smiled before he made his way up the stairs towards her.
"Hey," he said as he slid next to her and sat himself down. "Why are you sitting over here instead of where we usually sit?"
"Oh," she said. "Well, last night, Molly appeared in the fireplace to tell Ginny that she suddenly urgently wanted tickets to the match for her and Arthur." She smiled at Harry. "So, since Ginny can only get ten tickets to each game, and she'd already promised Andromeda two, Charlie two, George three, and then me two, she only had your usual ticket to give away. So, in order to keep them all together, I offered her my other ticket."
Harry stared at her. "Wait, so how was there a ticket left up front for me to get in here if she gave mine away to her parents?"
Hermione smiled. "I thought about that once I realized there was only one ticket left and, had I taken it, you would have been left out in the cold." She paused. "Well, probably not out in the cold, seeing as you're Harry Potter, but I didn't want to risk it."
"How'd you get in, then?"
"I bought tickets," she said obviously.
"I thought the match was sold out?" he asked as he looked around the packed stands while the crowd suddenly let out a raucous roar. Out of instinct, Harry glanced up at the sky looking for Ginny. He spotted her quickly and then glanced back at Hermione.
"It is," she continued, "but Martin knows people, who know people, I suppose. It was the only reason Ginny would let me give up my other ticket in the first place."
"Martin's here?" Harry asked, but right as the words left his mouth, a tall, lanky blonde haired man appeared behind him with two drinks in his hands.
"Oh! Here he is," she said with a quick smile once Martin squeezed past the two of them to sit on Hermione's other side. It was a tight squeeze, seeing as Harry was taking up what was supposed to be his seat.
"Oh, sorry," Harry said as he realized. He quickly stood.
"No, it's okay," Martin said politely. "It's no trouble at all."
Harry forced a cordial smile, but couldn't help that notice that Martin had a very proper and posh air about him. He seemed far more polished than the people Harry was used to hanging out with.
"How'd things go last night at the Burrow?" Hermione asked as she stood up to join Harry.
"Good," he said, "really good."
"I figured. Ginny mentioned that her mum was acting so strange in the fire last night. She claimed she seemed as though she was near tears."
"She cried last night when I told them," Harry said. "Arthur just smiled and said he appreciated me telling them. Molly just burst into tears and nearly crushed me with a hug."
She beamed. "I'm so excited for you Harry. Ginny's going to be so surprised. You're doing it right after the match?"
"That's the plan."
"You didn't forget the ring, right?" she asked seriously.
"Hermione…"
"You know if you had forgotten it, I would have just saved your skin," she said matter-of-factly.
"I know." He smiled. "It's what you do best, and I'm forever indebted to you for it."
He could see Hermione laugh, but couldn't hear what she said after that given that the crowd had begun cheering once again. He could barely hear anything, let alone Hermione, over the noise.
"Here's hoping the score turns around," she said nervously. "Holyhead is down by forty." She paused as they both watched Ginny score a goal. "Well, thirty now."
"Yes!" Harry yelled excitedly after Ginny scored. He turned back towards Hermione and sighed. "They better win."
"I know," Hermione said as she quickly hugged him. "I can't believe…" She smiled. "I mean it seems like just yesterday we were on the train to Hogwarts and…Oh, Harry!" She hugged him again.
"Thanks, Hermione," he said appreciatively before he glanced down at Martin and had a momentarily thought of wondering why this guy he barely even knew was sharing in an occasion that meant so much to him. He briefly thought of Ron; how he would much rather have him sitting there instead of this Martin fellow.
Harry realized he must have been staring at Martin for just a moment too long, because Martin suddenly stood and awkwardly put out his hand.
"Good luck tonight," he said, shaking Harry's hand. "Hermione's told me all about your plans."
Harry glanced at Hermione, who smiled and shrugged.
"Thanks," he said politely before turning back to Hermione. "I'm going to go down and see Teddy and everyone. Do you want to come?"
Hermione took a deep breath and looked at Martin. Harry had a feeling that visiting the majority of the Weasley family on her own would have been difficult enough, let alone with her current date accompanying her. "You go ahead. I'll be down after the game by the changing rooms, though. I can't wait to hear the good news." She hugged him again. "Good luck, Harry."
"Thanks," he said as he let go of her. He smiled anxiously and then turned and made his way back under the stadium. He could hear several loud cheers and boos as he walked to the other side, but couldn't help but wonder when this game would be over. He hadn't wanted a Quidditch match to be won so badly since the days he had played for Gryffindor, and that was when only the House Cup was at stake.
As he approached the entrance to his section, he couldn't help but think that if he had his way, he wouldn't be bothering to go and sit; instead, he'd wander the back halls for the remainder of the match to prepare himself. However, he had promised Teddy he would show up at some point, and he refused to break a promise to him. It was something he had silently vowed to himself the day Remus had asked him to be Teddy's godfather.
His mind traveled to that day that seemed so long ago as he climbed up towards where his seats were. He immediately smiled once he noticed Teddy sitting directly between Andromeda and Molly Weasley—standing on his seat, waving a Holyhead Harpies' flag.
"How are we doing?" Harry asked, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible in an attempt to avoid Molly's eyes.
"Only down by ten!" Teddy said happily.
"Excellent," he said with a smile at Teddy. As he looked at him, he could see Molly staring at him just feet away. Her eyes started to well with tears.
"HARRY!" George Weasley yelled from down the row. "What are you doing here? Ginny said you were still in Paris."
"I got back early," he yelled back as George made his way down the aisle to get closer to him. "Good to see you, mate."
"You too," George said before gesturing down the aisle. Harry followed his gaze and waved to Lee Jordan and Charlie Weasley, who were both sitting just down the row. He also noticed a very pretty girl sitting next to Lee, who seemed to be following George's every movement with her eyes.
"Who's the girl?" Harry asked.
"That would be the new," he paused and made a thoughtful face, "I'm not sure what the exact word is, but we'll go with a date."
"I see," Harry said.
George turned and yelled down the row for her to come and join them before turning back to Harry. "I'd like you to meet her," he said. "I mean the fact that I took her to a featured Quidditch match that my sister happens to be playing in, and I can introduce her to Harry Potter has got to score some points for me."
"Honestly, George," Arthur mumbled in an annoyed tone once yet another new body started to block his view and cramp the already limited room.
"It'll just be a second, Dad," George said. "Harry, this is Penelope. Penelope this is my very good friend, Harry." He glanced at her. "Harry Potter. You've probably heard of him."
"It's nice to meet you," she said as she shook Harry's hand.
"George, I can't see a thing," Arthur said now that three people were standing directly in front of him.
"You should probably get your eyes checked, Dad," he said. "You are getting up there in age."
"Move!" Arthur said, standing up himself and positioning himself between Harry and George so as to force George back to his seat.
"It was nice to meet you," Penelope said as George ushered her back to her seat.
Harry could distinctly hear George say, "He's practically married to my sister…" as they disappeared back to their seats, which, apparently, Molly had heard it as well. She suddenly started to cry.
"What's wrong, Mum?" Charlie asked, turning towards her.
"Oh, nothing," she said with a small sniffle before she grabbed Harry and hugged him. "Absolutely nothing."
"Right," Charlie said, giving Harry a strange and sympathetic look.
Once Harry did manage to break away from Molly, Teddy happened to grab his arm and gesture for him to come down to his level. As Harry leaned down, he suddenly couldn't make out anything Teddy was saying due to the crowd's sudden uproar. By the sounds of things, the Snitch had been caught.
"Who got it?" Harry asked immediately, looking up towards the sky. As it was, the crowd's celebratory cheers around him seemed to answer the question quickly enough, though, if he hadn't been sure, the excited tugging on his arm all but confirmed it.
"The Harpies won!" Teddy yelled happily, his hair turning bright turquoise. "They caught the Snitch! They won!"
"They did?" Harry asked, sounding genuinely surprised. "You're sure?"
Andromeda nodded as Teddy continued to jump up and down in his seat. Harry glanced down to see George and Lee high-fiving each other, and Charlie hugging his girlfriend happily. Molly was still smiling at Harry.
"I guess I better go…" Harry said slowly, suddenly realizing what it was time to do.
"I'd say so," Andromeda said just as Teddy grabbed hold of Harry's sleeve.
"Can I come?"
"No, sweetheart." his grandmother said. "Harry's got something he has to do on his own."
Teddy frowned.
"Actually," Harry began, "can I bring him?"
Teddy immediately began to beam as Andromeda looked at Harry questioningly. "Harry…"
"She'll be in the changing room for awhile," he said. "I'll need someone to keep me company…To keep me from going mad."
"If you're sure," she said skeptically.
"He is!" Teddy said, grabbing Harry's hand and answering for him. "Let's go!"
"All right, then," Andromeda said. "I'll be with the others once everything is said and done." She looked at Teddy. "Don't go getting in the way of anything."
"I'll look after him," Harry said, picking Teddy up under the arms and attempting to navigate him around the crowd into more open space.
"Where are we going?" Teddy asked once Harry put him down and took him by the hand.
"We're going to see Ginny."
"Good," he said. "I want to tell her that she played a wicked match."
"You make sure you do that," Harry said with a smile before gazing up ahead towards the changing rooms. He started to see a crowd forming around what he knew to be the entrance and immediately felt his face fall. He hadn't thought about the possibility of a large crowd of happy fans. He felt his stomach lurch.
"Do you want us to fight our way to the front?" Teddy asked, looking up at Harry.
"No. We're not in much of a hurry. We're in no hurry, actually."
"Oh," Teddy said as he shuffled his feet in front of him as people started to surround them.
"Can you not see?" Harry asked.
Teddy shook his head and Harry suddenly picked him up and positioned him so that he was sitting on his shoulders.
"Better?" Harry shouted up to him.
"Much," he said excitedly as he observed the happy faces of the crowd who were cheering for the Harpies.
"Well, you weren't hard to find," Hermione said with a wide grin on her face as she appeared out of the crowd, Martin in tow.
"Hi, Hermione," Teddy said.
Hermione smiled up at him. "Hi, Teddy. Did you have fun tonight?"
"I did now that the Harpies won," he said obviously as he suddenly noticed Martin. "Who are you?"
"Me?" Martin asked, slightly surprised at the fact that Teddy had addressed him directly.
"This is my friend, Martin," Hermione said with a smile. "Martin, this is Teddy."
"A friend like Ron was your friend?" Teddy asked bluntly. Harry couldn't help but smile at the preciousness of his godson, but he tried to hide that smile from Hermione.
"Oh," she said with an awkward laugh. "Well, not quite like that, no. We're just friends."
Teddy stared at both her and Martin curiously for a moment before leaning down to whisper into Harry's ear. "I like Ron better."
Harry laughed loudly as he patted Teddy's leg appreciatively. "I do too, buddy. I do, too."
"What are you going to do about this crowd?" Hermione asked. "If you do it now, you'll be on the front page of the Profit tomorrow."
"I know," he said in an annoyed tone. "I'm just going to wait and find somewhere where I can do it more privately."
"What are you going to do?" Teddy asked, leaning over the top of Harry's head so that Harry could see the top of his upside down head looking back at him.
"I'm going to ask Ginny something."
"Something important?"
"You could say that."
"Are you going to ask her to marry you?"
Harry looked up at him, surprised that he'd actually gotten that correct. "How'd you figure that out?"
"So, you are!?" Teddy said, seemingly pleased with himself for figuring it out. "You want to get married?"
"To Ginny, yes."
"Why?"
"Why not?" he asked, turning Teddy's favorite phrase around on him.
Teddy considered this. "Fair enough," he said, mimicking the response that Harry often gave him.
Harry smiled. "There are a lot of reasons why," he said as he noticed several of the players emerging from the changing rooms to sign autographs and meet fans, "all of which I'll explain to you when you're older." He reached up and pulled Teddy off of his shoulders and put him back on the ground.
"I'll watch him," Hermione said. Harry gestured for Teddy to go with her before taking a deep breath.
"Good luck," Teddy said, giving Harry a quick thumbs up. Hermione smiled at him as she put a hand on Teddy's shoulder.
Harry took a few steps towards the crowd and watched as several of the players made their way out of the stadium after meeting and greeting fans. There was a small fence and several large security wizards that were keeping the players separated from the fans for their protection. The door opened once again and Calista Cornwall appeared, smiling widely as everyone eagerly stuck out their autograph books at her.
Instinctively, Harry tugged at his hat and pulled it low on his head. The last thing he wanted to do right now was sign autographs, but he knew that if people discovered he was standing here, it was inevitable. The door opened once more and he could feel his heartbeat accelerate as Ginny stepped out to several flashbulbs and people yelling her name. He distinctly heard someone with a camera yell, "Where's Harry?" but Ginny merely smiled and signed a few autographs for several well wishing fans.
As he watched her for several moments, he began to make his way down towards the chain link part of the fence where less people were congregated. He leaned against it casually as Ginny ever so slowly made her way down the line of people. He couldn't help but smile at her as she signed her last autograph, waved politely to everyone else, and began to follow a large security wizard outside.
"Hey," Harry said as soon as she was within earshot, pulling off his hat as he said it. "Don't you think five years with that Potter bloke is long enough? I mean, sure he took down Voldemort, but what's he done for anyone lately?"
Ginny glanced in his direction and forced a smile towards what she assumed was just a random jerk of a fan. Harry grinned when he noticed the recognition in her eyes. "Harry?" she said, coming to a complete halt. "What are you…?"
"Thought I'd catch the match since I was in the neighborhood," he joked.
Ginny suddenly broke into a wide smile, though she wasn't the only person who had noticed the new celebrity in the room.
"Mr. Potter," said a boy who didn't look much older than Teddy. "Can I have your autograph?"
"It's that Harry Potter?" he heard someone else say, just as several heads turned towards him.
"Can we let him in here?" Ginny asked the large wizard next to her. "Quickly?"
Harry leaned down and scribbled his name for the small boy before the large wizard ushered him behind the fence railing. More flash bulbs than ever went off now as Harry walked over to join Ginny.
"What are you doing here?" she asked happily, taking his hand in hers.
"Surprised?"
"Of course I am," she said, unable to stop smiling. "You're supposed to be in Paris. You didn't tell me you had the chance to get back early."
"There's a reason for that," he said, gesturing for her to follow him outside.
"I wish I would have known," she said as they reached the open air of the outside. The second they were away from the cameras and fans, she reached up, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him.
"I wanted it to be a surprise," he said as he wrapped his arms around her as well. "Happy five years."
She smiled. "Well, this is the best present I could have asked for."
"I think I can do one better," he said with a nervous smile. He had been anticipating this moment for weeks now; for as long as he could remember. Now that the moment was here, he actually felt rather calm. He was far more excited than he was nervous.
"How's that?" she asked once Harry released her and glanced around. They were standing in a loading dock area that was separated from the general public by a large concrete wall. It was a private area designated to allow the players to Apparate home in peace. It wasn't the ideal backdrop that he had pictured, but it was private, which was what he wanted most.
"Ginny, I love you," he said.
"I love you, too," she said with a curious smile.
He smiled back at her. "Since I was sixteen, you've been the only girl I've ever thought about."
She kept smiling and opened her mouth to speak, but he cleared his throat quickly to stop her.
"I'm just going to do this," he said as he put his hand into his pocket.
"Do what?" she asked slowly, though her tone seemed to sense something was happening. "Harry, what are you—?" She stopped speaking when Harry started to drop down to one knee. Her jaw dropped. Harry had thumbed open a box with one hand and smiled up at her as he used his other hand to grab hers.
"So, I was thinking…" he said playfully, laughing a little awkwardly. Ginny laughed too, but found herself sniffling a little. "If you're not busy for the rest of your life, I was wondering if, maybe, you'd be interested in spending it with me."
Ginny laughed again, a louder sniffle escaping her.
"Will you marry me?" he asked, staring up at her seriously, watching her face for any trace of an answer.
She was quiet for several moments as the entire situation sunk in for her. "Of course I will," she said finally as Harry took the ring out and put it on her finger. She sniffled again as she wrapped her arms around Harry and hugged him. "How long have you…? Wait, you knew you were coming back today!?"
"I had it all planned out. Your dinner with Hermione, for example, was all part of it. She was keeping you busy while I went to tell your parents."
"Hermione knew?!"
"So did your folks, Andromeda, and Ron," he said as he finally let go of her. "Oh, and I just told Teddy about ten minutes ago. So, that means everyone else knows by now."
Ginny shook her head in disbelief. "No wonder my mum was acting so strange." She paused. "No wonder she wanted to come to the match tonight!"
Harry smiled.
"My family is usually rubbish at keeping secrets like this," she said. "I can't believe…" She looked up at Harry. "I had no idea."
"Good," he said as he kissed her forehead. "That's what I was going for."
"The ring is perfect," she said looking down at it. "Absolutely perfect."
"Hermione helped me with that," he shrugged, "since I'm not that good."
"I think you are," she said affectionately. She took a deep breath and looked back towards the tunnel they had just emerged from minutes ago. "So, wait, is my family in there waiting for us?"
"Yes. And Hermione, and whoever else caught wind of this, I'm sure."
"Oh, Merlin's beard," she said, covering her face.
"It's best to get it over with as quickly as possible," Harry said as he and she made their way back towards the tunnel. "Do you think the crowd is gone?"
"I was the last one out," she said, wiping her nose and straightening herself out. "They should have gone by now."
Sure enough, as they walked back into the tunnel, with the exception of a few stragglers, most of the fans had dispersed and gone on their way. The camera and press people had left completely, leaving Harry and Ginny unable to not notice a small gathering of very familiar faces.
"Did you do it!?" Teddy yelled as he ran a few steps ahead of the group. Everyone laughed as Harry picked up Teddy and started walking him back.
"I did do it," Harry said, loud enough for everyone to hear, but specifically addressing Teddy. "And guess what?"
"What?" he asked, genuinely curious as to what Harry was going to say.
"I'm engaged," he said, giving Teddy an excited little shake as everyone else cheered and clapped.
"Oh, congratulations!" Hermione said, rushing forward to hug Ginny tightly. She turned and did the same to Harry once he put Teddy down.
"Oh, Ginny…" Molly said with tears streaming down her cheeks as she went to hug her youngest and only daughter. One by one, everyone one else followed suit until Harry felt that he'd be hugged at least twice by most everyone.
"Welcome to the family," said George, putting Harry into an awkward headlock. "It's about damn time we made that official."
"Congrats, Harry," Charlie said, poking at George to let Harry go.
"I know you must have told Ron while you were in Paris," George said. "How'd he react to you marrying his kid sister?"
"He was happy," Harry said, noticing Hermione suddenly turn away from Ginny and towards them. "He was really happy. We had a few drinks and he toasted me."
"So, in just a few months," George said, turning towards Ginny. "We'll be able to pawn you off on Harry, then?"
"George…" Arthur said, shaking his head, but still smiling at Ginny.
"Congratulations, Harry and Ginny," Teddy said. "Can I still come over when you're married?"
Harry laughed and tousled Teddy's hair. "Ted, you'll have to come over even more now."
"Really?"
"Absolutely," Ginny said, smiling down at him.
"Hey," Charlie said, as if suddenly realizing where they were. "By the way, good game, Gin."
She laughed. "Thanks. To be honest, I'd almost forgotten I'd even played one."