Chapter 2 – Mummy and daddy

It was winter, not long after Christmas holiday. Sunrise was two and a half. She was the exact copy of Harry when he was a child (judging by the only picture in his possession found in Grimmauld place) her curls were black, abundant and wild, her green eyes were round and big, with long black eyelashes, her lips full. The only things she had got from Ginny were the fair skin, a cascade of freckles on her nose and the size; she was very minute and small for her age. To Harry she was a vision. He was extremely proud of her. He couldn't believe a child so stunning could have come from him and almost didn't mind reporter getting pictures of her, as they always did every time they stepped outdoor, beautiful as she was. He took great pleasure in choosing nice outfits for her which she would judge very severely before they could be fitted on her. If something wasn't of her taste and they even tried to approach her with it, she was capable to bring the house down with frightful tantrums. She was a force of nature. With endless energy and a monstrous strong will. It was mummy, daddy, daddy, mummy, daddy, daddy, daddy, mummy, mummy, mummy, daddy, mummy, mummy and daddy all day long without intermission from the moment she opened her eyes until the one she closed them. He watched her in her sleep sometimes, so tiny and defenceless, and was bewildered that a creature so small could bring such mayhem.
Harry was so hunted by the word "daddy" that sometimes he would hear it reverberating in his head even when in the office quite alone in silence.
One Saturday, just for fun, he tried to count them. By midday it was already 116 and she kept going strong, determined to surpass any records. By two he lost count overwhelmed.
Paradoxically a day of work was less tiring, notwithstanding the danger and the mental strain, than a day spent with Sunrise.
In the evening he and Ginny were always wrecked to bits. After a particular intense "mummy and daddy" day he collapsed in bed still dressed and without any intention whatsoever to move from it again, Ginny was doing her pre bed routine that wasn't neglected for any account no matter what calamity would befall on their head.
'Was it the same with Albus and James?' he moaned, his face against the pillow, so his voice came out muffled 'Why does it seem to me that with them it was a stroll through a rainbow compared to this?' he asked, overwhelmed by exhaustion.
Carefully passing a cotton disk on her skin, she looked at him through the reflection of the mirror and smiled 'We were twenty back then' she pointed out and after a second, frowning, 'Not almost forty'.
Her skin was then pulled in different directions while examined critically and then, with purpose, a white bottle on the sink was grasped, Harry knew to be anti-aging (Ginny had bored him out of his wits with the apparently miraculous properties of it) and smeared maniacally in every direction. Then she halted and started again to inspect her skin closely in the mirror like the moisturizer could, in the space of ten seconds, rejuvenate her of ten years.
Harry observed her amused but then sensing an approaching gloom, prodded himself up on an elbow and said 'You look lovely. Way better than when twenty.'
She simpered 'Oh Harry…' she cooed pleased 'don't lie!' as she resumed smearing her skin energetically, pinching her lips to repress a smile.
'I'm not laying. You are beautiful'
To him she was even more beautiful than in her twenties, he felt even more in love than back then. When they were young, he had all this passion burning in him for her but now the passion, that was still as strong as day one unfortunately, was accompanied by many other feelings. He felt his luck in having her as a companion, all the joys and even more the sorrows they lived together united them indissolubly, and, he knew, he would have loved her no matter what, shape, age and looks.
And, that being said, she was still objectively beautiful. Her obsession for fitness and beauty cares showed in a youthful Ginny who barely looked her age. Despite that she was starting to fret, to Harry quite unnecessarily, over her approaching forty.
'mmmh… but look to all these wrinkles' she said tracing them on her face.
'Well… You are 37 after all'
He realised straight away to have made a strategical error as Ginny turned so quickly, he almost jerked in surprise.
'Do I have them, then?' she boomed crestfallen.
'Ergh…' he stuttered undecided, not sure how to proceed. He knew for experience there wasn't a safe way out. Whatever he'd said could only incense her. If he lied, she wouldn't have believed him getting even more upset but to tell the truth was barely better. Not having time to plan a strategy he tried his best with: 'Well… Not many really… Only a bit' but seeing her horrified expression added fast 'But it's quite normal! There is nothing wrong with that!'
She turned slowly to the mirror without dropping the horrified mask and stared hard at her face.
'I'm aging' she whispered distraught 'I do have wrinkles'
Harry sat up 'Ginny, it's nothing bad! I have them too! It's fine!' he said trying to recuperate the situation and damming himself for having said what he did to start with.
But this turned out to be another mistake as she turned to him again but this time with a resentful expression 'Oh please! Men look only better at your age' she said pointing to him an accusing finger 'Easy for you to say it's fine! It is only us who start to look worse.'
Harry looked much the same as three years before, his hair was still as abundant and wild as ever and of a sheer black, only a bit of white appeared here and there, some lines appeared too, but nothing marked. He wasn't too mindful or interested about his look, however. He scarcely spared time in front of the mirror if not for shaving and didn't worry in the least about the approaching forties.
His popularity was likewise unchanged. However, Harry, unwilling to let the situation spoil every pleasure of his life, had started to run again in Regent's Park notwithstanding the groupies that were still as fervent and devoted as ever.
Ginny was still quite jealous of these girls, but she had learned to tolerate them like an inevitable evil. It had needed a lot of repetition from Harry's part of 'I'm married to you, and I only want you' and 'They could be my daughters' though to get to that point.
On the other side Regina, in those three years, had become little short of a new adopted child. Ginny had taken the trouble to get to know her and discovering the opposite of a pinkish background and understanding with horror what her living was principally made of, had taken her under her wing to try to give a proper direction to her life. She had talked to Margaret Skeeter and obtained for her a job in the magazine as a makeup artist as an inducement to drop her more obscure, borderline illegal, way of living.
They were meeting her very often. She had grown to be so in confidence and had conquered their trust so fully that she had been included in the Fidelius Charm's secret. Regina had managed to swap Harry from a glowing, almighty, spotless divinity to actual person. That didn't quench his admiration though and she was still worshipping him and avowing her love quite openly at any given occasion, but being that done in front of Ginny, without any kind of malice whatsoever and her behaviour being totally unreproachable and respectful to an almost worshipping degree in regards of Ginny, it was treated with indulgence by the latter and considered a teen age whim by both who very often joked about it.
'I disagree' Harry answered to Ginny's accusation 'And if you come here, I'm sure I'll still have a bit of energy somewhere to show you how wrong you are'
She puckered her lips to hide a smile and took another flacon from the hundreds. 'I have not finished yet'
'Yup, you are' he said moving swiftly toward the bathroom and sweeping her up, at which she emitted a shriek of surprise. She began to laugh and squirm playfully as he led her to the bed. He dropped her there and jumped in it likewise 'Now, I'll show you how beautiful you are'
However, after several fruitless attempts, he gave up and rolled off onto his back deeply mortified.
'I'm sorry' he said slightly panting 'I don't know what's wrong' but then remembering what had triggered the whole episode, added in haste 'But I assure you, you are quite stunning'
'Don't worry' she said sweetly caressing his hair.
'And you are a proper turn on. It's not you'
'I know…'
'And…' he was starting to say eager, but she stopped him kissing his lips.
'It's fine, Harry. I said not to worry. It's only tiredness'
'No, it's not fine…' he muttered darkly 'And I'm worried. Tiredness never stopped me before'
'Well… You are 38 after all…'
He sat up with a jerk 'What do you mean?'
'Nothing…' she said masking a smile 'I just said that it's quite normal at a certain age… You cannot have the same energy as when you were twenty, that's all…'
Harry was dumbfounded 'So, are you actually saying that my virility is thinning?'
'No, Harry I didn't say that. I just said that it's normal. It's fine.'
'No, it's not!' he replied upset 'It's easy for you to say "it's fine"!' he retorted accusingly 'Women don't have to worry about that, don't you?! It's only us….' But he tailed off realising what he was saying and perceiving Ginny biting her lips to hide a huge beam, sniggered.
'You are a cheeky little being, aren't you?' he said slumping down beside her, chuckling.
'We both got the message, I believe' he added pinning her in his arms while she was giving vent to her amusement quite openly now.
And since another "mummy and daddy" day was waiting around the corner, and they were both quite undressed without the energy for doing anything else they nodded off cosily in each other arms.