Chapter Twenty-Seven - Change the World in Big and Small Ways
Harry had requested a meeting with Griphook in January, and the Wizard and Goblin met in Griphook's office on a cold January morning. He'd been in this office many times over the past years, and always found the decorations and furniture strange. Goblins obviously had much different tastes in some things than Wizards and Witches did. When they had exchanged the formalities, and Griphook had motioned for Harry to sit down, he told the Goblin what he'd come to discuss.
"Griphook, there are two things that I wanted to talk to you about," he began, and Griphook nodded for him to continue. "First, the Charity fund's major project is taking care of orphans. Goblins have been helping out with that fund, and I want to make sure that some of the Charity funds are available to any needs that the Goblins have. I can't say that I really know what those needs might be, and so I was hoping that you'd consider taking on helping the Charity to find out what might help your fellow Goblins, and then help them however we can." Griphook smiled, that same strange expression that Harry always had to fight the urge to cringe from.
"I would be honoured to help you with this, Mr. Potter," he assured Harry, who nodded his thanks.
"Let's reserve fifty million galleons for you to start with, and see where it goes from there," he suggested. "I'll leave it entirely up to you to decide what projects to spend it on." Griphook indicated his agreement to this.
"Before we discuss the second thing I have for you, I need to start by asking you a question. Do you consider me a friend?" he asked seriously. Griphook looked surprised, and then considered his response carefully before answering.
"I've known you since you were eleven, Mr. Potter, and have worked with you for nearly ten years now." He paused for a moment before continuing. "I certainly respect you, and like you, but I would have to honestly say that no, we're not friends."
Harry nodded. "I feel the same way about you. I would say, though, that we understand each other better than most Goblins and Wizards understand each other." Griphook nodded his agreement.
"I'd like to look into the reasons for the problems between Goblins and Wizards, and see if we can work some of them out, and I'd like you to help me with this too," Harry said, and Griphook shook his head doubtfully.
"There are a lot of grievances that Goblins have with Wizards, Mr. Potter," he said gravely. "I doubt even you could make a difference in resolving those issues."
Harry smiled. "I think the House Elves might disagree with you on that one," he suggested, and Griphook laughed, one of the rare times Harry had ever heard him do that.
"True enough," he conceded. "Where would you want to start?" Harry thought about that.
"I'd like to start with a list of maybe the more general grievances Goblins have, since we'd get bogged down if we started looking at every grievance between individual Goblins and Wizards, and see where we can go from there," he answered. Griphook agreed that he could put something together fairly soon.
"This is strictly unofficial, Griphook, but keep in mind that I do have a little pull on the Wizengamot," he told the Goblin. "It took Hermione over ten years to get the House Elf bill of rights, and she hasn't given up on freeing them either, so hopefully you and I can be as patient with what we're starting here today."
Griphook nodded again. "Will there be anything else today, Mr. Potter?" he asked. Harry smiled, stood up, and then bowed.
"Just one other thing, Griphook. My friends call me 'Harry'. We've known each other far too long for you and I to still be so formal." Griphook stood and bowed too.
"Then if we are finished, I will bid you a good day - Harry."
Griphook was meeting with the other Goblin account managers later that day, and told them about his meeting with Harry. They were all a bit surprised by the money being set aside by the Charity Fund for Goblins. Gornuk was not impressed with Harry's second idea, though.
"Wizards will never treat us as equals," he told the others flatly. "They think of the other creatures of our world as possessions - little more than slaves to serve them. If it wasn't for the fact that we are stronger than House Elves and can fight back, we might have been slaves just like they are." Griphook saw the others nodding.
"You may be right," he conceded, "but telling him what our grievances are costs us very little, and at worst will have no profit, and at best, could have great reward." The other Goblins thought about that, and there were a few nods of agreement.
"I will put together a list of our biggest grievances, and give them to Harry," he told them, looking around at the other account managers again and smiling.
"Now, I have a thousand galleons I'm willing to wager for anyone here who'd like to bet against Harry Potter about this issue." All of the Goblins were laughing at that, and Gornuk took his bet.
"I'll happily pay you the thousand if I lose the bet, because it would be worth every knut and sickle. How about we give him and your money ten years?" They all laughed again.
Nine years ago tonight, Harry had proposed to her, a couple of seventh year students, madly in love with each other. Now here they were, twenty-six and twenty-seven years old respectively, with two beautiful boys; a baby on the way in just a few more months, and they were as in love now as they were back then. Harry was getting both boys dressed for the day, and Ginny was putting breakfast together. The boys had been up there a very long time, she thought, when the sound of little feet stomping down the stairs reached her ears. Her little boys came in then, followed by their father, and she couldn't help but smile at them.
"Happy Vawentine's Day Mommy!" the two boys yelled, each of them taking her a present. James had gotten her a very large box of chocolates, and was eyeing them hopefully. Albus had picked her out a beautiful and soft angora sweater that he'd thought would be perfect for cuddling with mommy. When the boys were done, Harry kissed her.
"I'll give you your present tonight," he promised her with a grin. Ginny held her growing stomach with a hand when she laughed.
"What girl could possibly help but be swept away with a promise when it's said like that?" she asked, and Harry laughed too.
"What are we having for breakfast today?" he asked her. Ginny looked at her oldest son, and smiled. She opened the box of chocolates.
"First, I think we'll all start with chocolate! Yes, that's right - chocolate for breakfast!" she told them and pulled one out for each of them as the boys cheered.
Harry was taking the kids to the Burrow. Ginny was soaking her tired body in a hot bubble bath, feeling the soreness in her back easing. Harry had gotten Fleur to take her shopping the previous weekend, and they had found a beautiful maternity dress for her to wear tonight. She was getting to that stage where she didn't feel beautiful, and certainly didn't think she looked beautiful either.
She closed her eyes for a while until she heard Harry get back and start getting ready himself. He was in the sitting room waiting when she came downstairs, and Ginny smiled. He looked more like a teenager waiting to meet his date's parents for the first time than her husband of almost nine years. He stood up and walked over to her, smiling, and put his arms around her waist.
"You are definitely the most beautiful woman in the Wizarding World tonight," he told her quietly, then kissed her softly. He leaned back and looked into her eyes, and then kissed her again - this time making absolutely sure that she knew how much he loved her. When he stepped back, he was smiling. "We're supposed to meet Ron and Hermione, so I guess we should get going."
They took the Floo network to a new restaurant in Chudley that they were trying out. Ron and Hermione were already there, and had ordered their drinks.
"What took you so long?" Ron asked them. Ginny laughed as Harry held her chair for her.
"Harry was busy snogging me senseless," she told her brother. Hermione laughed, and Ron made a face.
"Ginny, there's just some things a brother doesn't need to know about his sister - and best mate too for that matter," he said plaintively. "Please stop doing that to me."
When Harry and Ginny were both sitting, their waiter took their orders, returning shortly after with drinks for them. Hermione's pregnancy was just barely starting to show, and she was wearing a very attractive knee length dinner dress. Ron was looking good in a navy suit and tie. While Wizard fashion was slowly starting to come around, they still normally went to Muggle men's clothing stores for everything except the robes they needed for special occasions.
They enjoyed a quiet dinner together, reminiscing about the night that Ron and Harry had each proposed to their girlfriends, and about everything that had happened over the years since then. They left the restaurant after dinner, and went to a Valentine's dance in London. When Ginny was tired out, she and Harry said their good-byes to Ron and Hermione, and he took her home.
When they had both gotten ready for bed, and cuddled close together, Ginny pushed gently against him, as he pretended to be falling asleep.
"Hey, you told me this morning that you'd give me my present tonight," she said.
Harry opened his eyes, and she saw he'd been waiting for her to remember that. He handed her the present he'd slipped under his pillow earlier. She stayed curled up next to him, and he smiled as the paper and ribbon went flying all around them. She opened the box and lifted out an exquisite figurine of a red-haired mother and young daughter, both dressed in beautifully coloured gowns.
"Are you using your powers of divination again?" she asked as she smiled at him. "It's beautiful. Thank-you." She put the figurine on the night table, and turned toward him.
"I wouldn't say divination, but I do have one of those feelings I get sometimes," he told her, "and a little version of you would be pretty awesome." Ginny kissed him tenderly.
"I love you, Harry. Thanks for asking me to marry you."
His eyes filled with tears, and he hugged her. "Thanks for saying 'yes'."
Harry was sitting in Griphook's office again, and he was reading over the list of grievances that had been prepared for him. When he'd finished, he looked up at Griphook.
"The whole thing, in a nutshell, seems to be that Wizards don't allow Goblins the same rights we ourselves take for granted, and that the courts don't treat Goblins fairly, right?" he summarized, and Griphook nodded his agreement.
"Why don't we start by leaving out the issue of being seen and travelling freely in the Muggle world. I don't see that as a short-term solvable problem as long as Muggles continue with the lunacy of building and using nuclear, biological, and other massive weapons which we couldn't possibly defend against if they ever turned them on the magical creatures of our world. We both know that they probably would do that if they knew about us." Griphook nodded, though he didn't think that was exactly a very good start to their little meeting.
"For the rest of it, I don't see anything here that I disagree with myself. I certainly can see where other Wizards and Witches are going to want to fight me on certain points, but I'm willing to take up that fight." Griphook looked surprised, and Harry laughed.
"There are a lot of us out there who don't appreciate our Magical neighbours, Griphook. I'm not one of them, and there are a lot more Witches and Wizards like me out there who just need to be educated. I want to take this to Hermione, and see what she can come up with, since she will probably have a lot of good ideas for drafting a proposal like she did with the House Elf Bill of Rights. I have some ideas of my own about dealing with the legal issues between Goblins and Wizards, but let me work on that for a while too." Griphook inclined his head.
"Why don't we meet again in May or June, depending on when your baby comes," the Goblin suggested. Harry smiled and nodded.
"That will give me a chance to get some work done on this with Hermione and a few others," he agreed. "I think this is a good start, though. Thank-you for putting this together for me." Harry stood and bowed. "Have a good day."
Griphook also stood, and bowed. "You as well, Harry." While he watched Harry walk out of his office, he couldn't help but think that he was going to win that bet, and he smiled to himself as he went back to work.
Winter cold transformed into a spring where birds sang of love and budding flowers hinted at the beauty and colour to come. Victoire turned eight years old, and Teddy turned ten, now only just over a year away from starting at Hogwarts as a student. Harry continued the regular visits to the residence, spending time with Stewart and Michael, and as many of the other kids as he could. Susan was doing a fantastic job, and the staff and the children all loved her, and she obviously loved them.
The second residence would be ready to take on children soon, and the third and fourth, one in France, and one in North America, would open before the end of the year. Harry took a trip to Romania to see if he might be able to hire Nathalie if he built a residence there, and she was very interested, so he directed his manager to get people looking for property there, and plan for a new residence in Romania.
He and Hermione got together for some evening discussions about Goblin rights, and the legal system, and they would sometimes bring in other friends and family to talk about all of the issues that Griphook had told Harry were so important to his race. Bill was a lot of help, having worked so closely with them over the years. Hermione eventually came up with a Goblin Bill of Rights, which included a separate court system for resolving Goblin-Wizard disputes. When that was completed, Harry set up another meeting with Griphook.
The Goblin was reading through the 'Bill of Rights' proposal that Harry had given him to look over. He was impressed with it, and told Harry so when he was finished reading it.
"What do you think the chances are of it ever passing the Wizengamot?" he asked, and Harry smiled.
"I don't know, but before I even think about submitting it, I'd like you to go over it with other Goblins, and let me know if you have anything you don't like about it, or anything we could look at adding, although I'd caution that what's already in there might not all survive the process in the Wizengamot." Griphook was again looking at the plans for a separate court.
"It states here that the court would be two Goblins, two Wizards or Witches, and an independent - what does that mean?" he asked.
"My personal preference would be to have a Centaur," Harry answered, "but I'm open to other sentient creatures, or something like alternating between a Goblin for so many years, and then a Wizard." Griphook nodded.
"That's a novel idea," he said. They talked over different parts of the proposal for a while, and then Harry stood and bowed.
"When you've had a chance to go over this with other Goblins, and are ready to discuss it again, let me know," he told the Goblin. Griphook stood, bowed too, and then Harry left him to consider the matter, and decide what to do with the proposal next. The whole process was going much faster than he'd ever expected possible, but he knew the difficult part of doing something like this was yet to come.
There were already quite a few people around the Memorial Stone at Hogwarts early on the morning of May second. This was the tenth anniversary of the end of the war, and there were more visitors than usual. Harry and Ginny had left the boys with Winky, and come to spend this time with their family, remembering their loved ones. Ginny saw George and Marietta first, and went over to hug each of them.
"There are a lot more people here this year," George commented with a sad smile. Ginny nodded.
Harry put his arm around her, and they again read through the now-familiar names on the plaque, and thought about each of their friends. Harry felt a hand on his arm, and turned to see Teddy standing there, tears rolling down his face. Harry put his arms around his Godson, and held him close, tears in his eyes now too.
"Just remember that this is how much they loved you and me," he told Teddy quietly. "And we're both always going to remember them, and we're going to be happy and live our lives the best we can for them."
Teddy just held on. "Uncle Harry, I don't remember them. I never got to know them at all." Harry closed his eyes. How many times had he felt exactly the same, not remembering his parents either?
"Let's go to the school," he told Teddy. "There's something I want to show you." Ginny looked at them, questioning, and Harry thought that she could help with what he had in mind too.
"Can you come with us to the school, honey?" he asked her quietly. "There's something I think we can help Teddy with that he really needs right now." She nodded and took Teddy's hand, and they walked up to the school together. They went up to the Headmistress' office, and were invited in right away by Professor McGonagall.
"Harry, Ginny, it's good to see you," she said, and looked at Teddy's tear streaked face in sympathetic understanding. "Is there something I can help you with?"
Harry nodded. "I'm hoping you'll lend me your pensieve for a little while," he told her. "There are some things that I think our young man here is ready for, and really needs to see today." Professor McGonagall nodded, and went to get it out of the cabinet. She put it on her desk, and stepped back.
"Professor McGonagall, and Ginny, if you'd like to supply some of your memories of Remus or Tonks too, I'm sure anything you're willing to share would be helpful to Teddy," he told them.
He took out his wand and concentrating, drew a thick cord of memories from his head, then put his wand to the pensieve, and watched as they flowed into the basin, and there was the swirling mist he remembered from his previous uses of the amazing device. Ginny had also drawn her wand, and added some of her memories, which were more of Tonks than of Remus. Professor McGonagall thought for a few moments, and then also added a few selected memories - there were many that she would have that the boy did not need to see or know about. Harry turned to Teddy, who was looking at the pensieve curiously.
"Teddy, this pensieve allows a person to view the memories of other people. The three of us have put some of our memories in here of your mother and father." Teddy just stared at him. "You can go and see these memories alone, or I'm sure that Ginny will go with you if you'd like. I'd go with you, Teddy, but some of my memories of your parents are really hard for me, especially on a day like today, and I don't think I'd be able to keep it together and help you through this." Teddy looked at Ginny, and she smiled at him encouragingly.
"Will you come with me?" he asked, and she hugged him ithgtly.
"Of course," she assured him. "Are you ready?" Teddy nodded. Ginny explained to him what they would do, and what to expect, then they both 'went into' the pensieve.
"This is a pretty selfless thing you're doing for him," Professor McGonagall told Harry.
He smiled. "Most of the few memories I have of my parents - mostly of my mother - came from Professor Snape, and I know that because of how he felt about me, that giving me those memories had cost him a lot. This is the least I can do for Teddy to pay Professor Snape back for doing that for me."
Harry and Professor McGonagall talked about how things were going at Hogwarts, and at the residence. He told her about how excited he and Ginny were about the baby that was due sometime this month, and how he was hoping for a little girl as they waited for Teddy to finish seeing the memories of his parents.
When he and Ginny came back, Teddy hugged Ginny, Professor McGonagall and Harry, and thanked them all. Harry thanked Professor McGonagall too, and after they retrieved their memories, the three of them left her office and went to Andromeda and Teddy's quarters. She was there when they came in, and Teddy went to her, and she held him close as he cried softly. Andromeda looked at Harry and Ginny. Ginny answered her unspoken question.
"Professor McGonagall lent us her pensieve, and she, Harry, and I placed some of our memories of Nymphadora and Remus in it, then Teddy and I went in to see those memories. We hope it helps a little." Harry walked over to them and put his hand on Teddy's back.
"We're going to head out now, Teddy. If you want to talk about this after you've had some time to sort it all out, let me know, and we'll get together." Teddy turned and hugged him tightly for a moment.
"Thank-you, Uncle Harry. It helps a lot." Teddy couldn't say any more as the tears came back again.
Andromeda took him back in her arms, and nodded to Harry and Ginny that they should go ahead and leave. There were tears in her eyes too. She trusted that they would have made sure that Teddy wasn't shown any bad memories of his parents, and that his tears were both from happiness over getting to at least know and see a little bit about his parents, and sadness because he never got to grow up with them in his life.
She appreciated Harry and Ginny for giving him those memories. She smiled at them through her tears as they left, and then turned her attention to Teddy - leading him over to a sofa, and sitting there and holding him close for a long time until he'd cried himself out, and then it was time for them to get ready to go down to the Great Hall for breakfast.
Ginny was on a short shopping trip with Harry and the boys in London on the morning of the second Saturday in May when the now familiar pain let her know that the baby was ready to make an appearance. She had been holding Harry's hand, and must've squeezed hard with the contraction, because he took one look at her, and smiled.
"Shopping trip's over, boys" he told their sons. "Time for us to take Mommy to the hospital."
James looked disappointed, and Albus looked excited. They made their way to St. Mungo's as quickly as they could without drawing attention to themselves. Harry called Mum and Fleur, and let them spread the word to everyone else. By the time Ginny was settled into a bed, Grandma was there to take charge of the boys so that Harry could stay with Ginny.
He held her hand, wiped her forehead, and kissed her often while she worked through the pain and effort of each contraction. This baby was taking its time, and it was nearly dark outside when the Healer placed their new baby in Ginny's arms for the first time.
"Thank-you for finally deciding to join us, Lily" she told her little red haired daughter. "We're very glad you're here."
Harry just put his arms around Ginny and their little girl. She hadn't told him what name she wanted for her daughter. He couldn't speak, and just held them close and let his tears come.
There was a large group of family and friends there, but Ginny was absolutely exhausted, so this time, he took the baby out to them, so that she could rest. He handed the baby to Mum first.
"Lily, I'd like you to meet your Grandma," he told his beautiful baby. Molly had tears in her eyes too as she cradled the little girl.
"She looks just like Ginny did when she was born," she whispered. While she and dad were with Lily, Harry was pulled into a round of congratulatory hugs and kisses. Molly showed Lily to James and Albus. James was unimpressed, and was quickly distracted. Albus wanted to hold her, and he kissed her cheek.
"Hi Lily," he told his baby sister. "I'm your brother Al. You're really pretty. Red hair like our mommy has, and bwown eyes too." Harry smiled and hugged his younger son. Lily was passed around between the aunts, uncles, and Victoire before ending up back with Harry again.
"We'll take the boys tonight, dear," Mum told him with a smile. "We'll all leave Ginny to rest tonight. Tell her that we love her, and we'll see her tomorrow." Harry hugged her, and the boys, and then went back into the room to find Ginny sound asleep. He sat in the rocker, and sang his little girl her first lullaby.
The restorative the Healers gave Ginny, and a good night's sleep helped her recovery from the long labour, and they were able to take Lily home later the next morning. Mum obviously controlled the family visits, so that they were spread out over the next few days to keep Ginny from getting too tired. Winky was recruited to help with the boys while Harry concentrated on Ginny and Lily. James and Albus still spent lots of time with their mom and dad, but Winky helped them with baths, getting dressed or undressed, with meals, and cleaning up after them.
Lily was quiet, like Albus had been, but she was awake more through the night like James had done, except without the yelling and crying. Harry would take care of her in between feedings when she was happy to just let him carry her around, or rock her in a chair. Where his singing would put Albus right to sleep, Lily would instead watch him and listen to the songs, seemingly fascinated by the sound of his voice and his green eyes. It was in those quiet early hours of the morning that she first snuck up and stole his heart.
During May and June, Lily and the boys kept Harry and Ginny busy, and sleep was a preciously cherished memory for them. Lily finally started sleeping more at night after the first month or so, and they were able to start getting back to some semblance of normal life. Ginny started going back to the lab, and on the days that Harry went to the residence, Ginny would take Lily to the daycare at Marauders Institute.
When Teddy was with them, he'd help out with Lily or the boys, depending on what Harry needed. Victoire came over more often now too, since getting to help with Lily was like having a real live baby doll to play with. She absolutely adored her littlest cousin. James had his third birthday in June, and they had a party with some of the aunts and uncles and cousins, along with a few of the kids he was friends with at the residence and at the Marauders Institute daycare. They played games outside, had a buffet lunch, followed by cake and ice cream. James opened his presents, and then spent the afternoon playing in the yard with the other kids.
The Cannons finished the season in first place, and made it through to the semi-finals before losing to the Arrows. When school got out, Harry had a party for the children coming back for the summer to the Residence. The second Residence was opened, and the first group of forty-two children who would be going to live there was introduced to their new home. For their ninth anniversary, Harry took Ginny to their island for a couple of days. Lily went with them, and the boys were split up, with Albus going to stay with Grandma and Grandpa, and James going to stay with Penelope, Percy, and Nicolas.
Harry and Natalie had everything ready for the big trip with all of the children from the Residence, and on the afternoon they were leaving, all of the chaperones met in the Residence dining hall with the kids. Harry and Ginny were taking Lisa, Megan, Stewart, and Michael, along with Teddy and their own three kids.
When they had them all ready, and had explained what to expect with a portkey, they all touched it, and Ginny activated it. The next moment they were on the island. Gabrielle met them, and she was introduced to the children. She took them to the suite they would be using - one of the few in the hotel that had five bedrooms, for the occasional large family that stayed there. Harry helped everyone settle in before going back to the lobby to check in with Natalie and Susan to see how everything was going with getting everyone to the island safely.
Within an hour, all two hundred students, and just over one hundred and seventy chaperones had gotten there, and most were now settling in to their suites. Natalie had prepared itineraries for the week. There were only a few events that they'd be doing with everyone. There would be a dinner tonight to welcome them all, and a beach party in the middle of the week for an afternoon, and the night before they were to return to the residence, there would be a party for them.
Ginny and the kids were ready to go out exploring when Harry got back, so they headed out. They did a tour of the hotel and the atrium, then went out into the village. They stopped at Kevin's gallery. Most of the kids weren't very interested in the store full of paintings, but Michael was fascinated. Kevin smiled at the little boy, and asked him if he wanted to try painting. He looked at Harry to see if he could.
"Would you like to stay here and paint for a while?" Harry asked him. Michael smiled shyly and nodded.
"Why don't you all go on ahead, and Michael and I will stay here and paint together," Kevin suggested. "You can come back for us later, and I'll go for lunch with all of you." Harry nodded, seeing something in Michael that hadn't been there the whole time Harry had known him.
"Thanks, Kevin. We'll come back around twelve o'clock to get you."
They had a covered stroller for Lily. Teddy and Stewart helped keep an eye on James, and Albus stayed close to Harry and Ginny. Lisa and Megan were going from shop to store, looking at all the wonders. They bought matching coral necklaces at one store. The boys looked in on all the different games and activities, and talked together about all of the things they planned to do while they were on the island.
Kevin and Michael were up to their elbows in paint when they got back, and so they waited for them to clean up before going to lunch. Michael stayed right with Kevin through the entire meal, and Kevin seemed to feel just as strongly about Michael. After lunch, Kevin put a Gone Fishing sign on his door, and spent the rest of the afternoon with Harry, Ginny, and the other kids. They went back to their suite in time for everyone to get ready for the group dinner, and then went down to the banquet room where they were to meet everyone.
When Gabrielle and Kevin joined them, Michael went right to Kevin, holding his arms up, and he picked the little boy up and hugged him in welcome. Michael and Gabrielle had already met, but he hadn't known that she and Kevin were married, his eyes big and round as he looked at the beautiful young woman. She gave him a big hug too, that he very shyly returned.
Once everyone was seated at tables, Gabrielle went to the front of the room and welcomed them to her resort, and told them a little bit about the place, and some of the activities available to them. While she was speaking, Harry was looking around the room. He saw Mum and Dad with the two little girls that were with them for the week, and Victoire and her parents had two more girls that looked like they were about the same age as Victoire. Percy and Penelope were with Art and two brothers that Harry knew were five and seven years old.
He was very proud of his family and his friends at the Institute who had all given up a week of their lives to do this for these kids. When Gabrielle was finished, dinner was served to everyone. Kevin had sat Michael between himself and Gabrielle, and they were getting him to tell her about his morning painting, and what they'd done in the afternoon while her husband was playing hooky from work. Ginny and Harry both noticed that Michael was opening up to their friends like he hadn't done for anyone at the Residence, including them.
The children played at the beach, and in the water every day they were there. The older kids played the games like LaserBroom, and the younger ones had playgrounds and other activities made especially for the under-five guests. Michael went with them to some of the things they did, but more often was with Kevin and Gabrielle.
He'd rather spend a day painting with Kevin than playing in the water, and Harry was glad that the little boy was finally able to open up and talk to some people. The third night they were there, Kevin asked Harry to let Michael come stay with them at their bungalow for the night, and Harry wouldn't even have thought about saying no to the hopeful, excited looks both man and boy gave him. From all of the reports they were getting from the chaperones, every single child was having a wonderful week here.
Gabrielle and Kevin asked to meet with Harry, Ginny, and Susan on the day before the kids would be going home. They shuffled the kids around to friends and family so that Harry and Ginny could get away. Kevin got to the point as soon as they had all sat down.
"Gabrielle and I want to talk to you about Michael," he told them, and Ginny smiled at them encouragingly. "We'd like him to stay here with us after you leave."
Susan looked surprised. "How long would you like him to stay?" she asked Kevin.
"We'd like him to stay for the rest of the summer, and then after that, if he wants to stay, we'd like to adopt him," he told her. Kevin and Gabrielle were both smiling, and Susan smiled back at them.
"I think we can work something out there," she told them. "You're the first people he's connected with at all since his parents died. I've seen him around with you, and I get the feeling he's already fallen in love with you two - or should that be too."
Gabrielle laughed. "I think both are true, because we certainly love him." Susan stood up.
"We can send more of his things here for the rest of the summer, and if at the end of the summer you decide to adopt, and he's happy, then we'll make it happen," she promised them. Ginny gave Gabrielle and Kevin hugs.
"Why don't we go back to our suite? Harry and I will gather the rest of the kids up and take them out for a while, and the two of you can sit down and have a long talk with Michael," Ginny suggested.
Gabrielle, Kevin, and Michael were inseparable at the party that night, although Michael did come and give Harry a hug, and thanked him for bringing him here to the island. Harry hugged him back.
"You make sure you take care of my friends for me when I'm gone," he asked the happy young Wizard. "They love you a lot, so they're going to need lots of attention every day." Michael looked at him shyly. "I recommend lots of hugs and kisses too," Harry added. The little boy actually smiled for him, and nodded that he would do that.
There were tables of food, and music if any of the adults or teenagers wanted to dance. They all stayed up late to help get ready for the time change when they went back home. The next morning, they began getting all of the children back to the Residence. Harry and Ginny's group was one of the last to leave. There were hugs and kisses all around with Gabrielle, Kevin, and Michael, and then they were gone and back home.
Harry and Ginny had been back from their island trip with the kids from the Residence for about two weeks when they got the call that Hermione had gone into labour. Mum had called them at about five in the morning, so they called Winky and Kreacher to watch the kids, and went to St. Mungo's.
Hugo Weasley made his debut at around eight o'clock that morning. There was no doubt that he was Ron's son. Red hair, freckles, and could he yell! Harry and Ginny were taking their turn visiting with Hermione, Ron, Hugo, and Rose. Hermione looked tired, but happy. Ginny was holding Hugo in her arms.
"Mum says that Lily looks just like I did when I was a baby. I wonder if this is what Ron looked like?" she asked the others.
Harry laughed. "I think Ron was born with an Orange Chudley Cannons outfit on, but other than that, it could be."
Ron opened up the bag they'd brought with some things for Hermione, and pulled out a little Chudley Cannons sleeper.
"Got that covered too, mate," he told his brother-in-law, and Harry, Ginny, and Hermione all laughed at him. Mum came into the room with the signal that their time was up.
"We'll stop in once you've had a chance to settle," Ginny told Hermione as she hugged her goodbye. "If you need anything, let us know."
Albus had his second birthday in August, and they had a birthday party for him at the cottage. Teddy and Stewart came, and Ginny brought Lisa and Megan when she went for Stewart. They played games all afternoon, Albus opened his presents, and then they all sat down for a large dinner that was topped off with a giant chocolate cake.
The big launch day arrived a week before the end of August and the start of school - 3D-WWVN went on sale. Luna had been hyping it all summer, and when the doors opened at the stores that carried them, the crowds surged in to get theirs. Part of Luna's genius was in being able to accurately predict how many units would sell, having enough of each model, and making sure they were in the right places around the world. Nothing cuts back on sales more than running out of product to sell.
Harry went out and picked up two of them - one for the Cottage, and one for their island house. That last week of August they also had the back to school shopping trip for the kids at the Residence who would be attending Hogwarts starting on September first. Harry and Ginny left the kids with Winky and spent an afternoon with Lisa and Megan in Diagon Alley.
The school supplies were quickly taken care of, and then they picked up new robes and clothes. They wrapped things up with a visit to George's store, a stop to get ice cream for four, and then they picked up some basic, start of school, candy and chocolate supplies for both girls, who were now going into years three and two respectively. When they dropped the girls off at the residence, Susan let them know that at the end of August, Gabrielle and Kevin would be adopting Michael.
Griphook had sent him a message requesting a follow-up meeting to continue their Goblin Bill of Rights discussions. Harry met him at his office again, and Griphook had given him back his copy of the Goblin Bill of Rights that Hermione had put together, along with an additional parchment with some suggested changes, additions, and deletions. He had reviewed those suggestions and asked a few questions, then taken everything with him so he could talk things over with Hermione, Bill, and the others. Most of the Goblin suggestions didn't look like anything major, but he'd let the experts check it all out.
The Chudley Cannons had been a top team in the league for years now. This year was Ron's tenth, and he had decided that it would be his last as a player. He wanted another Championship first, though, and so he pushed his team to help him get it. They started out the season with four wins and no losses, and showed every sign of being good enough to win it all.
Harry was busy with the kids, the Residence, and the other Charity projects he was starting to work with. Plans for the Residence in Romania were approved, property close to the Dragon Reserve and Charlie and Nathalie's house was purchased, and construction started. Harry had never been busier or worked harder having fun, and he was loving every minute of it.
The big news story in politics that fall was the introduction of a Goblin Bill of Rights into the Wizengamot, sponsored by Harry Potter. The Daily Prophet, to nobody's surprise came down against it, and if the silly rag wasn't such a money losing business, Harry might have thought about buying them just for the satisfaction of firing all of the hacks they called journalists there. His bill was tabled at that meeting to allow the members to review the proposal and have time to seek advice and consider the motion. The morning that the news hit the Daily Prophet, Griphook met with the other account managers.
"Gornuk, you had better start polishing you galleons - I like mine nice and shiny when I get them," he told the Goblin he had the thousand galleon bet with. They all laughed.