Disclaimer: All things Harry Potter are NOT mine!

Chapter Four: Presents and Planning

MiaPOV

"…don't understand why I need to clean my room! No one is going to be in here except for me and Harry, and we're fine with it just the way it is!"

"You know your mum just doesn't want us all alone together to make any plans. I was lucky enough to sneak away myself, we need to take advantage of this time while we have it, and catch Harry up later. It's bad enough that Mia isn't here—"

"Gee, thanks Mione."

"Oh, you know what I mean!"

Mia simply rolled her eyes at this, readjusting herself on her bed as she held the crystal ball carefully in her hand, making sure she didn't drop it while also keeping an eye and ear out for any sound outside of her bedroom door. She had used the Muffliato spell to keep any unwanted eavesdroppers—mainly her brother—from listening in, but she was still very cautious. She didn't want anyone hearing the details of the plans she, Hermione, Ron and Harry were making for when the wedding at the Burrow was finished. Thankfully, Sirius relented after a while and accepted the fact that she and the others were going to be leaving, but Mia didn't want him clued in on exactly when, how, or for what.

On the other hand, Mrs. Weasley was a different story. Since Mia was with Sirius and Brian in Carriage for the time being, the Weasley matriarch was not able to back her into a corner for any sort of interrogation, but she had no qualms when it came to her friends and boyfriend. When she wasn't able to get anything out of them as to what they were doing, she did everything in her power to make sure that none of them were alone together for any amount of time. Therefore, she set them all to work with preparations for the wedding, which was only in a couple of days. Anything from leaning the chicken coop, washing and drying linens, cleaning out every single room in the Burrow, or de-gnoming the garden, Harry, Ron and Hermione were obliged to do it, all separate of course. It seemed as though Mrs. Weasley's plan was unfortunately working, but it just so happened that the chore she had set for Hermione to do was already done, and so she and Ron met in his room, and then proceeded to contact Mia through the crystal ball, placing her on top of a small table so she could see them both with no trouble.

"How did you get this thing to even work?" Ron asked as he sat down on his bed.

"It wasn't hard," Mia replied with a shrug. "I had a feeling, when your mum insisted that she had all the help she needed with wedding preparations, that she didn't want me getting together with you lot to plot anything. So, I made a double of the crystal ball, gave one to Hermione, and being the wonderful genius she is, she managed to make a connection between them."

"It was a brilliant idea, and it's good you remembered about Sirius' mirror," Hermione said, her smile a bit bashful at the praise.

"I really wished we could have used that instead," Mia admitted with a slight frown. "I can't believe Mungdunus knicked it from Sirius' house at Grimmauld Place, that's probably the one thing he was angry about the little crook stealing."

"It wouldn't have been any use anyway, since Harry broke his half," Hermione reminded.

"Nothing 'Reparo' couldn't have fixed," Mia said, remembering when Harry told her about how he smashed the two-way mirror that Sirius had given him as a Christmas gift inn their fifth year. He had only remembered about it when Mia was in a coma at St. Mungo's, and when he had realized that he could have used it to confirm whether or not Sirius was at Grimmauld Place instead of Umbridge's office, he became so angry with himself that he chucked the mirror at the wall, believing he could have prevented putting his friends in so much danger that night.

"But anyway," Mia continued. "How are things going over there?"

"Mum's driving herself mental, trying to plan this wedding on top of all the security measures that are in place," Ron answered. "And everyone's still upset about Mad-Eye."

"Who could blame us?" Hermione questioned softly, taking a seat down on the floor, where she was going through a rather large pile of books and separating them into two piles, with her beloved cat Crookshanks at her feet. "He may have been eccentric, but he was a good man."

"I was thinking, though," Ron pipped up. "That maybe he could have survived."

"What? How could he have possibly survived that?" Mia asked.

"You did," Ron pointed out.

"Barely, and that was completely different—"

Mia was cut off at the sound of knocking at the bedroom door, and she froze, worried that it might be Mrs. Weasley coming to check on them already. Ron groaned loudly as he got to his feet and proceeded to yank the door open.

"I'm doing it, I'm doing—oh, it's you."

Mia visibly brightened as Harry followed Ron into the room, making sure to close the door quickly behind him and taking a seat down on his camper bed.

"So, you got away too, huh?" Mia asked him with a grin.

"What the…" Harry gaped at her. "How…"

"Hermione is wickedly marvelous, plain and simple," Mia explained with a wink at her best girl friend.

Harry chuckled at this while shaking his head.

"We were just talking about Mad-Eye," Ron said. "I reckon he might have survived."

"How? Bill said that he saw him get hit with the Killing Curse."

"Yeah, but Bill was under attack as well, right? It could have been a different curse that he saw."

"He still fell from over a thousand feet, Ron," Hermione said, her voice a little shaken and her eyes awfully wet. "And his wand was blasted out of his hand, he had no way to save himself, even if he wasn't hit with the curse—"

"Can we please change the subject?" Mia interrupted. "I don't want to think about him falling like that. The Death Eaters probably took his body anyway, to cover their tracks, or even transfigured him into something horrible and…"

Mia stopped herself short, not wanting to imagine just what the Death Eaters may have done to the remains of Alastor Moody in order to cover up just what had happened the other night. Hermione sniffed to herself, a few tears beginning to trickle down her cheeks, and her expression incredibly sad. To Mia's great surprise, Ron immediately jumped out of bed and went over to sit next to Hermione, placing a comforting arm around her shoulders. He offered her a handkerchief from his pocket, which she accepted gratefully. Neither one of them saw the sly, smug smirk that Mia threw over in Harry's direction at this, nor the half-hearted glare he threw at her in return.

"What are you doing with all of these books anyway, Hermione?" Ron asked, once said girl calmed down some.

"Trying to decide which ones to take with us," Hermione replied, wiping the last tears away from her eyes. "When we're looking for the Horcruxes."

"Oh, of course," Ron said, clapping his free hand to his forehead. "I forgot we'll be hunting down Voldemort in a mobile library."

"Ha ha," Hermione said with an eye roll, pulling another book into her lap while Mia laughed for real. "I wonder, do you think we will need to translate runes? It's possible…I think we should take it, just in case."

"Why? You know Mia aced that class in our exams, she can probably translate with just a glance," Ron commented.

"Flattery will get you nowhere, Weasley," Mia stated. "Stop trying to butter me up."

"I have to keep my place as the favorite in some way, don't I?" he inquired with a would-be innocent smile that reminded Mia too much of his twin brothers.

"I knew I should have kept that to myself," she muttered.

"Listen," Harry suddenly said, sitting up straighter on his bed and looking at them all with a very serious expression. "I know you said after Dumbledore's funeral that you wanted to come with me—"

"Oh, for crying out loud, Harry, do not start this again!" Mia groaned, flopping backwards onto her bed dramatically. "I'm not above asking Ginny to kick your arse for me!"

"How did we know he was going to try and pull this again?" Ron wondered sarcastically.

"It's in his nature," Hermione said matter-of-factly, turning her gaze to the book in her hands. "Do you think it's a good idea to take Hogwarts, A History?"

"I'd so say," Mia agreed, sitting back up. "We should take your copy though, it's in better condition—"

"Listen to me!" Harry repeated in frustration.

"No, Harry, you listen!" Hermione snapped, darting her dangerously narrowed eyes back over to him. "We're coming with you, whether you like it or not."

"But—"

"Harry, I suggest you shut your mouth if you want to live," Mia advised.

"Are you all sure you've thought this through?" Harry persisted.

"Let's see," Hermione said, slamming the book shut and fixing the dark haired boy with a powerful glare. "I've been packing for days, so we're ready to leave at a moment's notice, which for your information has included doing some pretty difficult magic, not to mention smuggling Moody's whole stock of Polyjuice Potion right under Ron's mum's nose. I've also modified my parents' memories so that they're convinced they're really called Wendell and Monica Williams, and their life's ambition is to move to Australia, which they have already done. That's to make it more difficult for Voldemort to track them down and interrogate them about me. Or you, because unfortunately I've told them quite a bit about you.

"Assuming that I survive our hunt for the Horcruxes, I will go to Australia to find them and lift the enchantment, and if I don't…well, I'm sure that I've placed a powerful enough spell to keep them safe, and happy. They—they don't know that they've got a daughter, you see."

Hermione's eyes once again filled with tears and Ron pulled her closer to him, rubbing her shoulder with a gentle hand and giving Harry a reproachful look. Mia was temporarily stunned, unable to think of anything to say at the moment. She had assumed that Hermione may have taken steps to ensure her parents safety, but she never could have imagined that she would use the memory charm to make them forget their only daughter existed. Her fondness and admiration of Hermione grew ten-fold just then, as well as her sadness that she had to take such extreme measures to protect her family.

At least her parents won't end up like mine.

Mia could feel her throat tighten up at the thought, and she could feel her own eyes start to well with tears, but she blinked furiously to keep them from falling.

"Hermione, I'm…I'm so sorry," Harry said eventually. "I had no idea—"

"No idea that Ron, Mia, and I know perfectly well what might happen if we come with you, and the risks we are taking? Well, we do. Ron, show Harry what you've done."

"Nah, he's just eaten," Ron said.

"Go on, he needs to know!"

"Oh, all right. Harry, come here."

Harry followed Ron out of the bedroom and into the hallway, and Mia knew that he was going to show him the Ghoul that was dressed up in Ron's pajamas. A part of her was worried that the plan wouldn't work, at least not for long, and the rest of Ron's family would be in trouble if Death Eaters realize that Ron was more than likely with Harry. But Mia also knew that she couldn't keep pondering over the negatives. If either Mr. or Mrs. Weasley hear so much as a whisper that their family is in danger, they will drag them all into hiding in the blink of an eye. Mia just prayed that it would not come to that.

"Honestly, he's so stubborn," Hermione huffed, wiping at her eyes again. "I don't know how on Earth you deal with him, Mia."

"He wouldn't be able to bear it if anything happened to us," Mia said softly. "But this is definitely something we can't allow him to take on alone. And Hermione?"

"Yes?"

"In case it hasn't gotten through to you yet, even after all these years—you are truly the most intelligent, selfless, brave and amazing person I have ever met. You are going to survive, and you will get to see your parents again. I promise."

"Don't make promises you can't keep," Hermione said, before giving a small, sad smile. "But thank you, Mia."

After Ron and Harry returned after seeing the Ghoul that would be posing as Ron, they talked a bit more about their plans. They briefly discussed on where they should go once they do leave the Burrow. Harry voiced the option of visiting Godric's Hollow, but Hermione was concerned that Voldemort may expect Harry to go there once he turns seventeen and can go wherever he'd like, because of how much that place meant to him. There was also discussion of the other Horcruxes that are still out there in the world. What they could possibly be, and how they were going to destroy them. Hermione revealed to Harry and Ron that she had summoned every book that Dumbledore removed from the library after his funeral, summoning them straight to the girl's dormitories from his study. Also, to their great shock, she mentioned that Mia had gotten a hold of some books about Horcruxes as well, during the first week of the summer holidays.

"How did you manage that?' Harry asked, staring at her with wide eyes.

"Well," Mia said, her cheeks going red. "You remember the summer before fifth year? When I accidentally found that secret study behind the mirror?"

"You didn't," Ron said slowly.

"Well, I couldn't pass on the opportunity!" Mia defended. "Sirius' brother had handwritten notes on his theories about them, I thought they could be useful, in some way. So, when Sirius had to go back to collect a few things at the start of the summer holiday, I volunteered to go with him. I made sure I had my wand to do the proper spell to get myself back out, and thankfully it didn't look as though Sirius touched anything since we found the study, so I…I took everything I thought we could use."

"Have I mentioned just how much I love you?" Harry said with an awe-filled look.

"Maybe once or twice," Mia giggled. "But I did read some of the notes that Regulus had written, and his researched matched what Hermione has found so far. It is extremely difficult to destroy a Horcrux, but not impossible—you have to damage it beyond magical repair. Remember when you stabbed the diary with the Basilisk fang, Harry?'

"Vividly, yes," Harry answered with a nod.

"Well, that is because there is only one cure for Basilisk venom, and that's Phoenix tears," Mia explained. "There are not many methods of causing damage such as that, but it's something that we'll have to figure out—"

At that moment, their conversation was interrupted by Ron's door flew open with a wall-shaking crash. The force of it was enough to rattle the table where the crystal ball was sitting, causing it to roll off of the table and onto the floor. Mia gasped as her view of the bedroom started spinning around and around, knocking into of the legs of the bed frame, and she could hear Hermione's startled shriek as well as something heavy falling to the ground, followed by Ron's pain-filled yelp.

"I'm sorry to break up this cozy little gathering," Mrs. Weasley's voice said, trembling with rage. "I'm sure you need your rest, but there are wedding presents stacked in my room that need to be sorted, and I was under the impression that you lot had agreed to help. And Amelia, I don't know how, but I know you are here, and you better not be here in the next five seconds, is that understood?"

"Yes, Mrs. Weasley," Mia squeaked in fright before she waved her wand and ended the connection between the crystal balls, swallowing hard and fearing for her friends' safety.

On second thought, maybe it's a good thing that I'm not there at the Burrow right now…

...

"You can sleep in my arms, you don't have to explain

When your heart's crying out, baby, whisper my name

'Cause I've reached out for you when the thunder is crashing up above

You've given me your love

When your smile like the sun that shines through the pain

That's why I'll be there…"

Mia hummed to herself as the sweet, uplifting music filled her ears through the speakers of her radio, her arms crossed her chest as she stared back and forth between the two outfits she had laid out on her bed, trying to figure out which one she was going to wear for Harry's birthday dinner. In the end, she decided on a periwinkle blue, spaghetti strap top that had ivory-colored flowers strewn all over it, along with denim shorts and white sandals. She knew that Harry didn't want anything big, just a simple dinner with those closest to him. The Delacours would be there as well, since they had arrived at the Burrow the previous morning, and from she has been told, they were very lovely people.

Once she was dressed, she made sure to run a brush through her hair, styling her curls so that they flowed more loosely down her back, applying just the right amount of products that Catherine had taught her to do. When it was finally under control, she then proceeded to apply just a little makeup, enough to make her eyes pop a little more and make her lips shine. It made her remember the times she would watch her mother apply her own makeup when she was a little girl, and also the patient instruction she gave her when Mia was deemed old enough to start wearing it herself. A light blush, thin layer of gloss, and only enough liner to make her blue eyes more noticeable. It was as though Mia could feel Catherine's presence next to her, and see her smile of approval as well as fondness.

"Only enhance what's already there," Mia whispered quietly to herself. "That's what you always said, right Mum?"

Not wanting to mess up her makeup, Mia allowed only two tears to fall down her face before she sniffled and wiped them away, moving on to put in the pretty Occamey earrings she had received from Luna for her birthday, and the charm bracelet she had gotten from Hermione. She had just fastened it around her wrist when there was a knock on her door and it opened to reveal Sirius stepping inside, smiling at her. However, when he got a good look at what she was wearing, his smile dropped and his eyes widened, his face losing just a bit of its color. His expression instantly made Mia feel worried, and she picked at the fabric of her shirt.

"What is it? Do I look bad?" she asked. Sirius continued to gape at her for a few more seconds before he seemed to snap out of whatever trance he was in and started shaking his head while striding over to Mia's closet, roughly rummaging through it, muttering under his breath.

"Nope, no, no, mother of Merlin, no."

"Sirius, what are you doing?"

"Too much skin, not happening."

"Too much-?"

"Here!"

Sirius pulled out a lovely, white lace cover up that was more suitable for days at the beach, over top of bathing suits, holding it out to Mia.

"It matches your shoes, and it'll cover your shoulders while still being open and appropriate for summer days like this," he said, avoiding eye contact. "You won't overheat and still look just as beautiful."

Mia was utterly confused for a grand total of ten seconds before she suddenly understood Sirius' reaction. Her features softened as a bittersweet ache swept over her.

"Sirius—"

"I know, you're not technically a child anymore, you can make your own choices, and I certainly don't have a right to tell you what to wear. Just…please? For the sake of my heart and sanity? I'm already going to have to hex any man who comes near you tomorrow at the wedding, please give me a reprieve for today?"

Again, Mia felt her eyes begin to well with tears, Sirius' actions reminding her so much of Ben that it was damn near close to heartbreaking. After another brief pause, she took the lace cover shawl from him and started slipping it on, tying it in the front. The older man sighed in relief and gave her a sheepish smile, rubbing the back of his neck as he told her she did look very nice, to which she thanked him. Soon enough, she, Sirius and Brian were all standing in the living room together, ready to head on over to the Burrow. Mia felt a small stab of hurt when Brian deliberately turned away from her to latch onto Sirius' hand instead of hers for the journey. The boy was still upset with her, and even though Sirius had made him apologize for the way he talked to Mia, she could tell at the time that his heart wasn't in the apology. Her heart ached, knowing that her leaving was causing him pain, and that was the last thing she ever wanted to do, especially after all that they've lost within the past few months. He was scared, and lashing out, but the fact that he barely spoke to her now, or even wanted to be around her much, made it all the more worse.

By the time the three of them appeared at the Burrow, Mrs. Weasley was already cooking dinner in the kitchen, with Madame and Monsieur Delacour seated at the table with their youngest daughter, and Fleur's little sister, Gabrielle. When Mia, Sirius and Brian entered the kitchen, the little blonde girl lit up, her eyes sparkling as she jumped from the table and hurried over to greet Mia.

"Hello, Mia!" Gabrielle gushed in her native French. "It's so good to see you!"

"Hi Gabrielle," Mia responded in turn with a kind smile. "It's good to see you too. How have you been?"

"I've been very well, thanks. I'm going to be started at Beauxbatons in September, I really can't wait."

"That's wonderful, I'm sure you're going to do excellent," Mia praised, causing the eleven year old to beam. "Gabrielle, this is my little brother, Brian. Brian, this is Gabrielle, Fleur's sister."

"You're magic too?" Brian asked, curiosity clear in his tone.

"Oh, yes. Not az good az my zister, but I am 'oping to be, one day," Gabrielle replied, her English much better than the last time Mia remembered. "Hey, would you like to go en ze garden? We can catch ze Gnomes before zey get a 'old of ze cabbages."

Brian—always ever in the mood for a little mischief—eagerly nodded his head, and then the two of them were hurriedly making their way outside through the back door. Then, mere seconds later, Mia heard Brian's all too familiar, joyful, and enthusiastic cry of "Harry!"

"And just like that, we no longer exist," Mia muttered with a smirk.

"We can't blame him. He's been cooped up for a while, seeing Harry and the others, and chasing the Gnomes will be good for him," Sirius said. "Hello, Molly."

"Hello Sirius, it's good to see you both," Mrs. Weasley greeted. "Mia, this is Monsieur and Madame Delacour."

"Enchante, Mia," Monsieur Delacour said, standing from his chair and shaking her hand. "We 'ave heard much about you from our daughters."

"All good things, I hope," Mia chuckled lightly.

"Of course," Madame chimed in, tucking her beautiful, silvery blonde hair behind her ear and her pink lips forming a dazzling smile, her Veela charm shining through. "Gabrielle 'ad spoke often of you when you saved her from ze merpeople in ze Black Lake, at 'ogwarts. We cannot express our thankz to you for your bravery."

"Well, Mia does have such a big heart, that tends to help out one in need," Mrs. Weasley added fondly. Mia felt herself blush at her words, and she spoke with the Delacours for a few more minutes in French, to which they seemed to appreciate and even complimented on her flawless flow of their language. Sirius offered to help Mrs. Weasley with the cooking, but she merely narrowed her eyes at him, telling him that after the last time, he was not allowed to even lift a spoon in her kitchen. She then proceeded to shoo him away from her stove just as the back door opened and Mia looked over, smiling to see Harry, Ron, and Hermione, stride in, along with Ginny, the twins, and their older brother Charlie.

"Mia darling, you're finally here!" George greeted, his grin wide and he quickly went in for a hug, followd closely by Fred. Mia's smile faltered slightly at the sight of the dark hole on the side of Gorge's head where his ear used to be, but he nor Fred allowed her to linger on it for long, as they sandwiched her between them and started tickling her mercilessly.

"No!" she squealed in laughter, trying to get away from them. "Don't! Stop it!"

"Don't stop it?" Fred repeated.

"As you wish," George said, matching the wicked gleam in his twins' eye. Their efforts doubled, making Mia shriek and wiggle around.

"For goodness sake boys, let her go!" Mrs. Weasley reprimanded them, although it wasn't said with her usual annoyance at their antics. Abiding their mother's request, Fred and George finally ceased their attack and Mia wiped at her eyes, glaring at them.

"Thanks a lot for the help," she grumbled at Harry and her friends, once she was able to regain her breath.

"It looks like you had it covered," Ron snorted in amusement. Mia just huffed before walking over to Harry and cupping his face with her hand, giving him a kiss.

"Happy Seventeenth Birthday, Harry," she said happily.

"Thanks, love," Harry said, smiling.

"Happy birthday, Harry," Sirius added as well, stepping forward to wrap up his godson in a tight hug, ruffling his hair and a twinge of sadness in his expression. "The time really has gone by way too fast. It feels like yesterday your mother was yelling at me for tossing you too high into the air, and now you're all grown up. This truly is a special day."

"Thank you, Sirius," Harry muttered quietly. "I'm glad that you're here."

"So am I. Can you come with me for a moment? There's something I'd like to give you."

The look on Harry's face was curious and he nodded, letting Sirius lead him out of the kitchen and into the living room, carrying one of the brightly wrapped parcels he brought along to the Burrow with him. Mia smiled to herself, knowing exactly what was in the package, and knowing that Sirius wanted some privacy when he gave it to Harry.

"Is Sirius giving Harry his present?" Hermione asked.

"Yes. It's something of great sentimental value, I'm sure neither he nor Harry would like an audience," Mia explained. "This will mean a great deal to the both of them."

…

By the time seven o'clock came around, all of the guests had arrived for Harry's birthday dinner, except for Mr. Weasley, who was unfortunately stuck at work. Remus, Tonks, and Hagrid were escorted into the backyard by Fred and George when they appeared at the borders of the protective enchantments surrounding the Burrow, and soon after, wine, Firewhiskey, butterbeer, and many other assortments of drinks were passed out. Several long tables were placed out in the backyard in order to accommodate everyone, seeing as there just wasn't enough room inside. Mia, Hermione, and Fleur all took care of decorating the yard with purple and gold streamers in the trees, as well as hundreds of glowing fairy lights. Mrs. Weasley eventually brought out a hug birthday cake in the design of a golden Snitch, which was to be eaten after dinner, and Sirius had to act quickly to keep Brian from getting his sticky fingers caught in the icing. Seeing Brian giggle loudly as Sirius swiped him off the ground and spun him around made Mia's heart swell with happiness as well as sadness.

"Brian still isn't talking to you?" Harry whispered from next to her, as they sat under one of the many lit trees, his fingers tracing lines in her palm.

"No," Mia whispered back, shaking her head. "And I really can't blame him for being upset. I just wish…"

"I know, love," Harry murmured. "He'll understand soon."

"I hope so," Mia said. "I'm just happy that he's grown fond of Sirius. He really is good with him."

"To the surprise of many," Harry stated with a low laugh. "And by the way, thank you."

"For what?"

"Sirius said you helped him figure out what to do for my birthday gifts. It…it really meant a lot to me."

"I hardly did anything, Harry," Mia commented honestly. "All I did was get back something of Sirius' that Mundungus stole in the first place. After that, it was all your Godfather's doing."

"Still," Harry said, smiling at her lovingly before kissing her cheek. At that moment, Mia glanced around to make sure that everyone else was preoccupied with whatever they were doing before she reached into back pocket of her shorts and held out yet anther wrapped parcel, tied together with gold ribbon.

"What?" Harry said in surprise.

"Just because I helped a little with Sirius' gifts, it doesn't mean I wasn't getting you one myself."

"Mia, you—"

"Don't want to hear it," Mia countered in a sweet, sing-song voice. "Just open it."

Harry sighed, giving her a half-exasperated, half-adoring look before taking the present and ripping it open. Once the wrappings were removed, he opened the lid of the box and gazed inside. Resting atop a tiny pillow of blue velvet was a silver, oval shaped necklace that had ancient markings on the front of it, and was attached to a matching chain. Harry's eyes widened at the sight of it, and he stared at it for a few more seconds before lifting his gaze back up to Mia.

"It's a cartouche," she told him, fidgeting with her hands nervously, worried he may not like it. "From Egypt. Bill actually helped me place the order in, he still has some close friends there. The Egyptian wizards take great pride in their talismans, and they have such a rich history. It's specially made, the Hieroglyphics spell out your name, and it's been enchanted with spells for protection against evil. It's supposed to bring good luck as well, and the chain is practically indestructible. I know you're not really into jewelry, but the chain is long enough to be tucked into your shirt, so Ron won't see it and tease you about it, although he shouldn't be one to talk, considering the ridiculous thing Lavender made him wear last year, and I honestly wasn't sure what to get for you, because quite frankly, you are rather difficult to shop for, and—"

Mia's rant was ended abruptly when Harry wove his hand around the back of her neck and brought her in for a searing kiss that took her breath away. He pried her lips open almost immediately and deepened it, making Mia very grateful they were sitting, as her knees would most likely have given out otherwise. The heat from his kiss made her lose sense of her surroundings, and—much too soon for her liking—Harry released her lips and grinned at her, his green eyes bright.

"I love it. Thank you, Mia," he said.

"You're welcome," Mia breathed out heavily. "If I'd known I'd get that reaction, I would have given it to you earlier."

Harry chuckled at this and then pulled her in again for another kiss, this one more gentle and tender. Once they pulled away, Harry took the cartouche out of the box and then proceeded to drape it over his head, letting the small pendant fall low on his chest. He took a moment to admire it, turning it over in his fingers and letting his name shine in the lights of the trees before safely tucking it underneath his shirt. Mere minutes afterwards, Hagrid came over towards them ,wearing his furry brown overcoat with a yellow polka dot tie, and a bucket sized glass of wine in his hand.

"Can' believe it, really," Hagrid said with a beaming, tipsy grin. "Seventeen! Six years ter the day since we met, Harry, d'yeh remember it?"

"Vaguely," Harry replied, grinning up at him as well. "Didn't you smash down the front door, give Dudley a pig's tail, and tell me I was a wizard?"

"I forge' the details," Hagrid chortled.

"I'm still upset that I wasn't there to see it," Mia laughed. "That's a core memory I would have cherished for a lifetime."

Before anyone could say anything else, the merry gathering was interrupted by the arrival of an incoming blueish white light, streaming through the sky and heading right towards them. No one even had time to blink before the light landed on the ground in the backyard, and after only a few seconds, the light started to twist and take the shape of a small weasel, looking at them all with its unblinking, white eyes. The Patronus stood up on its hind legs and spoke clearly in Mr. Weasley's voice.

"Minister of Magic coming with me."

+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+.+

Please leave a review!