Chapter XXXVII - Happy Days

Harry sat in the common room pouring over his transfiguration notes, trying to figure out why on earth he had defeated the darkest wizard of all time, but felt as if he was going to fail his N.E.W.T.s. He glanced down at his notes again, trying to absorb the information. Personally, he figured that the middle of April was too early to be studying, but Hermione was glaring at him from the other end of the room and he figured that it was best to continue. Hermione had decided that everyone should start revising right away and had made revision timetables for Harry, Ron, Ginny, and herself. She was driving everyone mad. Harry was silently counting down the days until Lupin's wedding so that he could stop revising. He just wanted to hold Ginny and just … well do nothing.

It felt good to know that he had nothing looming ahead of him anymore, such as the prophecy. He glanced over at Ginny, who Hermione had made go sit on the other side of the table so that she and Harry would actually get some work done. She of course, was sitting next to Ron, but she ignored him anyway so it didn't matter. He turned his attention back to his notes and re-read the same line over again, before finally just closing his book and deciding that if he had to sit here then he was going to get his homework done. Hermione didn't seem to mind his change of plans, as long as he was doing schoolwork she seemed to be happy. As Harry worked on his potions essay, he watched the common room slowly empty out as people went up to bed.

He glanced over at Ginny again, grinning when he saw that she was almost asleep curled up in the chair. He thought she looked beautiful. As he felt the familiar stirring for her, he closed his books and put everything away. To hell with Hermione and her bossiness, he wanted to be with his fiancée.

"Harry!" Hermione hissed. "You promised to revise."

"I've been revising for three hours! Leave me alone."

Hermione sighed and gave him a dirty look before turning back to her book. Harry walked over to Ginny, who was now fast asleep, breathing quietly. He scooped her up into his arms and sat down in a chair near the fire, cuddling her on his lap. She snuggled into his chest and Harry wrapped them both in a blanket. "I love you Harry," she whispered, half asleep as she snuggled close.

Harry brought her hand to his lips and kissed her palm, knowing that she liked that. "I love you too."

He held her close as he made himself comfortable and ignoring Hermione's glowering looks, he drifted off to sleep.

Ginny woke up as the embers in the fire diminished slowly. She felt Harry's arms wrapped tightly around her and she smiled. She glanced down at his watch, surprised to see that it was after three a.m. She turned a bit to kiss his lips softly. He let out a small moan, so she kissed him again, followed by the corners of his mouth, and then down the column of his throat. He moaned again and she felt his hands slip into her hair as he yanked her up to his mouth. She savoured the kiss, allowing his taste and texture to run through her. His lips were brilliant and his mouth was just … she trembled in anticipation as his tongue slid along her bottom lip and began to run in little circles with hers. She pressed herself closer as his hand slid up her jumper to stroke her skin lightly and she moaned.

"Harry … we can't."

He grinned and slid a finger under her bra. "Why not?"

"Someone could walk in," she murmured as she let out another small moan. "We're in the common room."

He laughed softly, continuing to touch her skin as he brought his mouth to her throat. Ginny slipped her hands beneath his jumper, running her hands along the smooth contour lines of his chest. As Harry went to nip at her ear, Ginny pressed her lips to his throat, liking the feel of his Adam's apple as it jumped with his pulse. She brought her mouth up over his chin and along his cheek, liking the feel of the rough stubble that had grown there. She moaned as he undid the clasp on her bra as his hands continued to stroke beneath her jumper.

"Harry …"

He grinned. "I can get my invisibility cloak in less than a minute."

Ginny nodded, she was so hot and so … she wanted him, and she wanted him now. "Go."

He grinned and gave her a soft kiss before he stood up, placing her back into the chair and hurrying up to his dormitory. She sat there, placing a hand over her racing heart. He was the only man in the world who could make her feel like this. She reached under her jumper to fix her bra. She was not going to walk around the school with her bra undone. She smiled when she saw him come back down with the map and the cloak. They both quickly were under it and they silently headed to the Room of Requirement, which took a lot longer than it should have, as every couple of steps, Harry's hands would start to wander, but soon they were inside and Harry had barricaded the door. He pushed her back onto the bed, grinning and Ginny yanked his mouth down to hers. They kissed slowly and softly, hands roaming.

Then Ginny pushed Harry back onto the bed, pulling off his sweater so that she could run her fingers and her lips over his chest. He just grinned at her as her mouth slid lower. She slowly unbuttoned the snap on his jeans as she continued to plant small kisses on his body. Harry gasped as she went even lower, her lips leaving a wet, hot burning sensation on his body as pleasure rocked through his system. When she was done, he pushed her back, grinning as his lips met hers again. Soon he had her undressed as well and was repeating the process. His lips trailed slowly down her body and as the pleasure built, Ginny fisted her hands into his hair. Then they were kissing and soon the pleasure took them over once again.

As they laid there in each other's arms, happily spent from their lovemaking, Harry ran his fingers through Ginny's hair as it was sprawled across his chest. Ginny snuggled closer in contentment as she pulled the blankets up a little higher.

"Cold?" Harry asked.

Ginny nodded. "A little." When Harry pulled her a little closer, keeping his arms tightly around her she sighed. "Much better."

Harry grinned. "Well, I thought so."

She smiled. "Harry, are you excited to go to Remus and Tonks' wedding?"

Harry shrugged. "Sure, I think it's great that those two are getting married. And Tonks is having a baby, so that is cool. Remus would be a great dad."

Ginny smiled, as she ran her finger in small circles in the middle of his chest, trailing the line of dark hair that went below his naval, when Harry sucked in his breath, she grinned and slid her hand back up. "I've been thinking about our wedding."

"Oh yeah?" Harry asked, knowing that Ginny knew she was driving him crazy with her touch.

She nodded. "Uh-huh, and I was wondering when you wanted to get married?"

Harry looked down at her and smiled."I'd marry you right now."

"Really?"

"Yeah, really. Whenever you want to get married, I'm game. What did you have in mind Gin?"

Ginny smiled. "Well, I thought maybe we could start planning our wedding …"

Harry grinned, she sounded nervous. "Sure love. When do you want to get married?"

"I don't know … before the year is up, I guess … is that too soon?"

Harry leaned down to kiss her lips softly. "No, it's not too soon. How about … well I proposed to you on Christmas Eve, want to get married this Christmas Eve?"

"On Christmas Eve?"

Harry nodded. "Yeah, I don't know we could get married on Christmas Eve, go to Potter Manor for the evening and then spend Christmas Day with your family. Then we could leave the next day for our honeymoon … it's just an idea, I mean, if you don't like it we can always pick a different day."

Ginny sat up, leaning down to kiss Harry softly. "I love it! That sounds perfect! And it gives us lots of time to prepare for the wedding."

Harry grinned. "Okay, er what do we have to prepare?"

Ginny laughed. "Well, we have a date, so now we need to know where to have it? What kind of food? Flower arrangements? Clothing? People who will be invited? Lots of work is involved. But help me, Harry, if I ever go as crazy as Mum and Fleur did, kill me."

Harry laughed. "No way, then what would I do with my life?" He kissed her softly, pushing her back down onto the bed as his lips met hers and his hands began to slide up her body. "I love you."

Ginny smiled up at him as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I love you too. We'll start planning the wedding tomorrow."

Harry grinned. "Good idea, because right now my mind is on something else entirely."

He slid his hand up her sides, sending tiny shivers through her body. "Hmm, I like the way your mind works, Mr. Potter."

"I like the way you feel, Miss Weasley."

Ginny laughed. "Well then, by all means, take advantage of me."

Harry grinned as he kissed her neck. "Oh, I plan too."

Harry stepped into the master bedroom at Grimmauld Place, grinning when he saw Lupin pacing in front of the window nervously in his dress robes. Since Tonks' dad was a muggle, he had insisted on them marrying in a church, but other than that, he didn't care what happened with the wedding. Harry knew that Lupin was nervous about it. He leaned against the door frame and grinned.

"You know, just because I gave you ownership of this house doesn't mean I'm going to like it when you wear a hole in the floor."

Lupin turned and managed a small smile. "Let's see how calm you are when you get married."

Harry laughed. "Hopefully I'll be calmer then you. Ginny and I started planning it early on in the week. We're getting married on Christmas Eve."

Lupin grinned. "Harry, that's great." Then he paled considerably. "Oh boy, I'm going to be a dad by then."

Harry laughed. "You're going to be fine. Little Remus or Little Tonks will have the greatest dad in the world. And besides, they're always coming out with new cures – maybe they'll be able to discover something. Tonks won't let you hurt your kids, Remus."

"I know … but I'm still going to worry."

"You shouldn't, that's how you get grey hair."

Lupin laughed. "I knew there was reason why I wanted you by my side today. You're good at cheering me up. You're so much like your father, yet so much better because you're not. I can't explain it, but thank you for being here with me today, Harry."

Harry smiled. "No problem. You're like a father to me, or a brother or another great friend. Usually I can't decide what category you fall under. But you're all three to me, and no one deserves to be happy as much as you do. Tonks is perfect for you. This baby is perfect for you. You're going to be fine."

Lupin smiled and pulled Harry into a hug. "Thank you. James and Lily would be so proud of you. I love you, Harry, to me you are all of those things as well … well maybe not father, but you're sometimes like a son. Sirius would be proud of you as well."

Harry grinned. "I like to think so. I love you too. Besides Tonks is great."

Lupin nodded. "I don't deserve her, Harry. She's still so young and so beautiful. Why does she want me? I'm an old man. I'm nearly fifteen years older then her! But the woman won't listen to reason!"

Harry laughed. "You're not an old man, and besides, Tonks knows what she wants, and it's you. Age hardly matters."

"I know but … she could have anyone, Harry. Why me? There's nothing special about me?" "But she wants you, and you're stuck with her. There's no way she's letting you out her of sight ever again. Now come on, it's time for you to get married."

Lupin nodded. "Yeah, I suppose it is. I love her more than anything else in the world, and it scares me."

Harry smiled. "I know how that feels. You'll be fine, come on. Let's go."

The wedding was great. Tonks and Lupin were joined together in the church, and Nymphadora Tonks Lupin was determined to be Tonks Lupin from now on. Lupin didn't mind, he loved her too much to care. Harry thought she looked beautiful. She had let her natural mousy brown curls come through, and she had it styled all up in fancy curls on the top of her head. Her dress was white with lavender ribbon strung through the edges of the dress. It was beautiful. Lupin's eyes had practically popped right out of his head when he had seen her. Harry just stood next to him and grinned. He'd passed on the rings and he smiled when the preacher had pronounced them husband and wife.

When the ceremony was over, they had a small celebration at Grimmauld Place. The wedding guests had only consisted of Tonks' parents, McGonagall, Harry, Hermione, a few select members from the Order, and the Weasleys. They ate a meal that Harry had asked Dobby to come prepare over at Grimmauld Place, and then just had a small informal affair. There was some dancing and some chatting, but it wasn't the same as Bill's wedding had been. Harry pulled Ginny into his arms for a dance as the music played. She looked gorgeous. Tonks had supplied her with a lavender coloured dress that fit her perfectly, showing off every curve of her body. Harry had to prevent himself from drooling every time he looked at her.

"Have I told you, Miss Weasley, how incredibly beautiful you are?"

Ginny smiled. "Only once or twice, but I love to hear it." She rested her head against his shoulder as he held her close. "Tonks and Lupin are so happy together."

Harry nodded, his hands resting comfortably on her waist as they swayed to the music. "Yeah, they are. Remus was worried before the wedding, going on about not knowing what Tonks sees in him. I told him that it didn't matter, she loves him and she wants him and there's no chance in hell that he could escape."

Ginny laughed. "You're right about that. I see exactly what Tonks sees. He's handsome and he's smart. He has such a huge heart, Harry, and he's been hurt so many times because of his condition and because of the loss of his best friends. He needs Tonks even more then I think he realizes."

"I agree. Just like I need you."

Ginny smiled and lifted her head up slightly so she could kiss him softly. "I need you too."

Harry brought his lips back down to hers, nibbling gently, just as he felt a hand on his shoulder and he looked up into the grinning face of Fred Weasley.

"How you doing, mate? I'd like to dance with my sister if you don't mind." He shoved Harry out of the way and forcefully steered Ginny off in another direction.

Harry laughed as he watched Ginny wince from Fred's crazy dancing, just as someone placed a hand on his arm. He turned to see Tonks standing there. "Hey, Mrs. Lupin."

Tonks grinned. "Wotcher Harry! Want to dance with me?"

Harry grinned. "I'd love too." As they began to dance, Harry spoke. "Remus doesn't think he deserves you. But I think he does. I think you're the best thing that could ever happen to him."

Tears welled up in her eyes and she blinked them back. "Oh, I've been so emotional lately; Molly tells me its hormones because of the pregnancy and all. And he most certainly does deserve me. I love him so much it hurts. And now he's stuck with me for life."

Harry laughed. "That's what I told him."

Tonks smiled. "I hear that you and Ginny have set a wedding date yourself."

"Yeah, we're going to get married on Christmas Eve."

"That's wonderful. I'm so happy for you two. Do you know how rare it is to find such love at such a young age?"

Harry shrugged. "I guess I was lucky. She's everything to me."

Tonks smiled. "As she should be. Harry, Remus and I were talking and he figured that since it was my idea that I should talk to you … but this baby … would you be … would you be our baby's godfather?"

Harry grinned as he glanced down at her still flat stomach. "I'd love too!"

Tonks grinned. "Oh really? That's wonderful. I was worried that you might not want to be … but oh this is great!" She leaned down and kissed his cheek before giving him a huge hug. "Oh, I've got to go tell Remus." She kissed his cheek again before hurrying off.

Harry laughed as he watched her and then turned to find Ginny standing in front of him.

"Hey, you escaped from Fred?"

Ginny grinned. "And I find you kissing other women." She pulled him to her to bring him into a dance.

"Damn straight, I guess I'm irresistible. She asked me to be godfather to their baby."

"Oh really! That's great, Harry!" She kissed him softly. "You'll be a great godfather."

Harry grinned. "Yeah, and I won't use the baby as a quaffle either."

"What?" Ginny exclaimed. "Why on earth would you do that?"

Harry laughed and he quickly told her about the story that his dad had told him about James' and Sirius' Quidditch adventure with baby Harry in the living room. "My mum was horrified. She didn't know about it until my dad told me."

Ginny laughed. "She had every right to be! That is not how you treat a baby! It is funny though. I can see Sirius doing that."

"Me too. He should be here today."

"He is, he's in our hearts." She reached up to kiss him softly. "He's where he belongs."

Harry nodded. "I like to think so. I love you, Gin."

"I know, but I love to hear it."

Harry grinned and leaned down to nibble at her lips. "I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, and I love you."

Then his lips met hers.

She slipped her arms around his neck to pull him closer as she deepened the kiss. They both stopped dancing and they stood in the middle of the dance floor, just basking in each other's embrace.

Ron held Hermione in his arms as they swayed softly on the dance floor. He glanced over at Harry and Ginny, not surprised in the slightest to see them snogging again. "Do they always have to do that?"

"Yes, Ron." Hermione replied. "They do it just to annoy you."

"You think?"

Hermione sighed. "No you dummy! They love each other and their getting married at Christmas time. What do you want them to do? Ignore each other."

Ron kissed the tip of her nose. "I love it when you get all fired up like that. No I want them to be happy; it's just that she's my sister so I have to pick on her a bit."

"You do not, you just choose too."

"I can if I want too."

"Are you two bickering again?" Fred asked from beside them. He was dancing with Tonks and shaking his head.

"Yes." Ron said. "Now butt out!"

"Tut tut, Ron, get some manners. Hermione you better whip this guy into shape."

Hermione laughed. "I'll work on that."

Fred grinned. "I can give you some tips."

Hermione grinned. "I'll keep that in mind." She let Ron steer her away and pull her into the hallway. Then before she could respond he had her pushed back against the wall and he was kissing her passionately. "Oh my," she murmured against his lips.

Ron grinned. "I want you, Mione. I love you so much."

She smiled and slipped her fingers into his hair. "I love you too. Do you think we'll be missed?"

"No." Then before she could comment, he swung her up into his arms and carried her upstairs, locking them into a spare bedroom where he dropped her down onto the bed. "They won't miss us at all."

Then his lips met hers removing all thoughts from her brain.