Souvenirs.
"I'm supposed to be George's partner aren't I?" Ron asked indignantly. "Is this any way to treat a partner? He's kept me in the dark like everyone else."
They had all just sat down to dinner and Molly was levitating heaping bowls of chicken, potatoes, and vegetables onto the table. It was a welcome-home party for Hermione, she had returned from Paris a few days earlier. As a Weasley dinner party went, it was a small group: just the elder Weasleys plus Ginny, Ron, Harry, and Hermione. Ginny had come home from Hogwarts for the weekend just for the occasion. The rest of the clan had begged off for various reasons. Percy and Bill were both very busy with the upcoming one-year anniversary of the 'Battle of Hogwarts' Memorial ceremonies. Percy was coordinating all the Ministry arrangements; Bill was handling financial issues involving large charitable contributions for the improvements at Hogwarts and the 'top secret' Monument there. George, also, had been extremely busy working on a secret commission for the Ministry, so secret in fact that he wouldn't tell Ron anything about it.
"Now Ron," Arthur said. "I'm sure your brother has his reasons. Even at the Ministry, where no one can keep a secret, there hasn't been a single word leaked about that Monument."
"That's not entirely true, is it Arthur?" Molly asked knowingly, glancing in Harry's direction. "What were you telling me you heard yesterday?"
"Well," Arthur squirmed as he avoided Harry's eyes. "It's being said... Harry had a hand in the design. But...'' he hastily added, "you know how it's been, according to the papers Harry's had a hand in just about everything lately. I'm sure it's all hogwash."
"Yeah," Ron laughed. "According to the Prophet, Harry's fathered half the babies born in Britain this year." Everyone laughed but Ginny, who shot Ron a look and then one at Harry for laughing.
"Well Harry," Hermione asked, still chuckling. "Did you?" She looked mischievously at Ginny. "Help design the Monument, I mean." They burst out laughing again, even Ginny joined in this time.
"Not really," Harry said. "They did ask my opinion about it. I told them what I thought, but I have no idea what they actually came up with. I'll be just as surprised as everybody else."
The table went very quiet when Harry dropped that bomb and they all stared at him. "What did you tell them you thought about it, Harry?" Molly asked quietly.
"All I said was I absolutely did not want my name on it, and it shouldn't mention Voldemort or Death Eaters either. The last thing we should do is give Tom Ridexactly what he wanted, immortality, by putting his name on a permanent monument at Hogwarts." He paused, reluctant to be the wet blanket at Hermione's party. "It should be about everyone who fought, and especially the ones that died."
Everyone stared at him until Arthur cleared his throat and asked Ron to pass the chicken. Harry thought he caught a gleam in Molly's eye as she turned quickly back to the sink. Ginny reached under the table and squeezed his hand and briefly placed her head on his shoulder. Harry looked apologetically at Hermione and tried to convey that he was sorry for killing the mood, but as she stared back at him he did not see annoyance on her face, or even sadness; what he thought he saw was pride.
The atmosphere improved over dinner as Hermione told funny stories about her dealings with the French and passionately described the roll the British delegation was playing in the fight for House Elf rights on the continent.
"How are your parents, dear?" Molly asked her.
"They seem fine...a little odd, but fine."
"Odd?"
"I'm sure it's nothing. I'm probably imagining it. I've been watching them very closely since I used that memory charm. I want to be sure there are no lasting effects. They seem a little distracted since I got back, but cheerful enough." Harry and Ron exchanged brief knowing glances.
After dinner they retired to the sitting room and Hermione ran up to Ginny's bedroom to retrieve an arm load of gifts she had brought back for everyone.
She started by handing Arthur a muggle souvenir of the Eiffel Tower. It had a clock in its belly and a cigarette lighter in the top. "Fascinating!" He proclaimed, and immediately set the sleeve of his robes on fire.
She gave Molly a coffee table book of magical photographs of Paris that not only moved, but also had street sounds. You could hear honking horns, barking dogs, and one even had a waiter at a sidewalk cafe being rude to a tourist. "Oh, it's wonderful dear. Arthur," she asked sternly, after hugging Hermione. "When was the last time we went on Holiday?"
"Don't know," he answered distractedly. The fire was out now and he was trying to figure out how to set the time on the clock. "Must have been before Charlie was born... Oh look, it has a tiny Battery!"
"Well," Molly continued, ignoring his comment about the clock. "We're almost empty nesters you know, maybe we should start planning one." Ron inhaled some butterbeer and started coughing.
Ginny got an autographed poster of the French all-Witch Quidditch team the 'Saint-Brieuc Sirens'. "The Sirens!" she exclaimed. "How did you get an autographed one?" She unrolled it and held it up so they all could admire it. Harry had to concentrate on looking at Ginny and not the lovely French athletes smiling and waving from the poster.
"During dinner one evening it came out that one of the French delegation was dating their Keeper. So, I asked, and he got it for me."
Ron looked gloomily at the floor, his mind's eye showing him the group of delegates, including Hermione, lauhing and talking at dinner.
"But ..." Ginny said, looking at Hermione out of the corner of her eye.
"I know," She interrupted and recited, having heard it a hundred times, "The Harpies are the Best."
"Absolutely!" She agreed. "But I'll put this on my wall right next to Gwenog's." Then she too hugged Hermione.
Hermione handed Harry a normal looking, accordion folded, muggle street map of Paris. Harry took it, turned it over, and examined some of the inside pages. "Uh… thanks Hermione... this is ... great," he said flatly. "Watch," she said, rolling her eyes as she pulled out her wand, tapped the map, and said "Revealo". The map started to shift and change. Soon it was an entirely different map of Paris. The streets were largely the same but the shops and buildings now showed little animated pictures of sites and attractions of the Wizarding world. When Harry touched one of the sites with his wand it expanded and told him all about it.
"Brilliant!" Harry exclaimed, and snatched the map back. "Thanks, Hermione."
"Now, for you," Hermione said, giving Ron a devious smirk. She pulled a shocking yellow T-Shirt from a bag with a flourish. "I saw this and just knew it was 'you'." Written on the front of the shirt in large black letters surrounding a red heart it said;
"I ( Heart) the Louvre!"
Everyone laughed except Ron, and Harry who was still engrossed in his talking map.
"Very funny," Ron said sarcastically, as he took the shirt from her and held it in front of him. "Not bloody likely I'll wear this!"
"You don't have to take it then..." she said, as she grabbed it back. "I'll just keep it."
"Fine," he said, petulantly. "But it's way too big for you."
He mumbled something about more butterbeer and walked into the kitchen. Hermione looked as though she might follow but stopped, the look on her face a combination of hurt and annoyance.
"It was just a joke, Ronald," she called loudly after him, annoyance obviously winning out.
"What is his problem?" she barked, rounding on Harry.
"What?" Harry asked, as his head snapped up from the map, not sure what just happened.
"He's been sulking ever since I started work at the Ministry," she went on, getting angrier. "I do important work! And the Ministry values my contribution. If he thinks I'm going to sit around the house and… pine away for him while he goes off to work with George he's...well, he's... "
"I don't think he thinks that..." Harry said, just trying to calm her down.
"Oh?" she pounced. "You know what he thinks? Please, enlighten me."
"Uh, I don't..." Harry stammered, he wondered how he ever got into this. "But I don't think he wants you to... pine?"
"Well, he better figure out what he does want then." She folded her arms across her chest and dropped back into her chair.
When Ron didn't return from the kitchen they all went back to talking about their presents, but Hermione's heart wasn't in it. She gave Molly some things to give to the rest of the family and said, "It's getting late. I should be heading home."
"I'm sure Fleur will love the coffee, dear." Molly said. "She still gets a little home sick, I think. You will come to the Memorial with us next week, won't you?"
"Of course, thank you," Hermione said tiredly. "My parents have declined the invitation, but they seemed very pleased to have been included. In fact, like I said before, they seem to be in a wonderful mood since I got back." She glanced back towards the kitchen. "Maybe Ron will be out of his funk by then."
"I'm sure the two of you will work it out." Molly said, patting her arm.