"Merlin's beard! Yes!" Hermione shouted in response.
The hall's oxygen was replaced with deafening screams and cheers that shook the castle's walls to their foundations. The two of them got to their feet and wrapped around each other. Her magenta robes crumpled against his emerald clothes as they stayed together as close as they possibly could.
Mcgonagall couldn't even act like she was remotely interested in the paper anymore. It stayed on the ground in front of her chair and she gazed toward the two of them in such a tight, warm embrace. Her eyes were tearing up. What next?
Harry, once again, found himself to be the center of attention. Though, this time, it was for something he wanted more than anything.
Without fail, Harry and Hermione became the pinnacle of gossip and the single concentrated topic in every conversation. Hermione felt like she'd become betrothed to Merlin himself with how many told her congratulations.
That night, however, Harry didn't feel like sleeping. He whispered to Hermione that he was going for a stroll in the castle and she kissed him, beckoning her dear fiancee to come back to her soon.
As dark as the castle was and as much as he recalled walking the halls in his invisibility cloak, Harry found that he was underwhelmed with the newfound freedom to amble around Hogwarts after student curfew. Everything was as he remembered, even the fat lady thought he was returning to Gryffindor tower. He knew the password was "beansprout" but knew a first year student now occupied his bed, along with Ron's, Seamus, Neville's and Dean's. Harry figured he'd visit the common room again, but he merely waved at the portrait of the fat lady and moved on to the entrance hall.
There, toward the dungeons, Harry heard footsteps. They were slow, deliberate and carried an ornery vibe about them. How he could tell whose footsteps they were, Harry had no idea. He knew, though, and he didn't even turn when the footsteps stopped at the top of the stairs.
"You'll never change, will you, Potter?" Malfoy said with the most bitter tone he could manage. However, there was something else behind his voice. Was that fear? Envy?
"Reckon I should be more like you, Malfoy?" Harry turned his head to look back at him as the two were viewed by every eye in every portrait in the entrance hall. Even the wolf hound stopped menacing Sir Cadogan so that they could both the black haired young man face down the bright haired student. "Think I should become a turncoat, a braggart, and a bloody coward?"
"Your fame has been a thorn in my side for long enough, Potter! I'm going to head you off this time and–"
"Run and cry to your mum because I drew my wand at you? Hope Snape trips over us and lets you off while I get detention with points taken away? As I remember, seven years ago, you challenged me to a duel. To no surprise to anyone, you pulled a bait and switch. Tried to get me out in the open while you laughed warm in your bed. Well, Draco, here we are in the very place you claimed we should duel." Before Draco could comprehend what he meant, Harry drew his wand, training it on him immediately. "Now, do you want to pull out that wand that pledged fealty to me? Or do you want to stand there and look stupid some more?"
Draco looked torn. He edged his hand toward his left hip pocket, but then looked at Harry's thinking better of it. Harry made that moment last as long and painfully slow as he could before pointing his wand at Malfoy's.
"Allow me to give you some very much needed advice, Draco, and listen closely, because the first one is free. Severus Snape is dead, Crabbe and Goyle are too." Harry let that sink in as he took a few more steps toward him. "I would feel bad for them, but I have over fifty true, gifted wizards that lost their lives to grieve for. Not to mention they tried to kill my mates. For a moment there, I thought you might feel some remorse, or perhaps even considered joining me, but that never happened, did it?"
That's where Harry left it hanging for a good long moment. He gazed at the stunted Draco Malfoy for what felt like an hour and then simply rolled his eyes.
"Accio." Harry said in a bored tone, pulling Draco's wand out of the air as it hurtled toward him. Then he carelessly flung it down the steps behind Malfoy, not caring if it shattered. "Now, go fetch and get your beauty rest, Jimmy. Need your brainy sleep for school tomorrow. Off you go."
As if disappointed with himself, seeing this play out far different in his head, Malfoy aimed a death glare at the back of Harry's head as he walked away. He knew Malfoy had no wand at the moment and he knew he was defeated anyway. The Slytherin former prefect knew better than to curse Harry while his back was turned. He didn't know if he could transfigure Draco into a ferret, but he was willing to try.
"You've got it coming, Potter! Mark my words!" Draco said as Harry was almost out of earshot.
"Can hardly wait." Harry said without even trying to be heard.
That was when he caught a familiar sight. A pair of amber eyes appeared out of the darkness like to big coins. Mrs. Norris came out of the side hall and gazed at Harry, seeming unsure of what to do.
"Yes, Mrs. Norris, I'm sure Filch would love a good excuse to give me detention." Harry said, feeling the first great wave of freedom.
"Potter!" The next voice Harry thought he would hear came straight away.
"Yes, hello, Filch." Harry said, as he kept walking. Filch came out in his balding, greasy head and limp that had only gotten worse since he saw him last. He carried a lantern, holding it upward toward Harry as he walked, trying to keep up with the younger, more stable man.
"I see you got the title of professor rather young, ey? Quite the accomplishment for a young man like yourself. Congratulations, young Professor Potter." Filch said in an absolutely astounding show of respect that Harry would have never believed in a million years to be true.
"Um, thanks, Filch," Harry tried to think of something else to say to the man who nearly succeeded in convincing a fake headmistress to string him up by his ankles.
"Now, I don't suppose you've noticed any little filthy troublemakers runnin' bout these grounds?" He asked as he followed alongside Harry, and a lot of his kindness came into clearer context.
"No, Filch, I haven't. All quiet on this front." Harry said, figuring Malfoy was already back to the dungeons by now. It would have been fun to sick Filch on him, but he didn't feel like making a victory lap. Seventh years were usually not reprimanded as harshly as the younger students because they normally had good reason to walk the grounds at night.
Before Filch could even notice, Harry stepped back away from him as he continued to walk.
"Well, I was just wondering, since you're so popular with the kids, I've heard them talking, you could give me a little hint here and– Potter?" He looked around, waving around his lantern. He looked around in a full circle, not seeing him anywhere.
Harry walked away soundlessly as his invisibility cloak hung around him. Obviously, he couldn't just disapparate, but he could certainly make it look like he did. He never liked Filch, and he wasn't about to act like he was going to be his snitch. Harry caught snitches, he did not act as one unless it was the right thing to do.
When he got back to his quarters, he saw Hermione had not moved from her position on the bed. Exhausted from such a long day, after he removed his clothes and got into bed with her, it took very little time to fall asleep.
The next day was Ron's day. Even though Harry and Hermione were basically the hottest thing since fanged frisbees without the enormous marriage hanging over everything, Ron felt it in the air. Things were going to get better this time. Of course, breakfast was more of the same. Harry and Hermione had to discuss the finer details of the wedding like excited little children planning out a camping trip. It was like this all week, and not only with the bride and groom to be, everyone.
"And of course Ron will be best man, let's put Neville as the next groomsman."
"The best man!" Ron said with a voice that caused a bit of a silence to cloud the great hall for a moment. There was a nice big grin on Ron's face as he faced Harry and Hermione, who had both their eyebrows raised at him. "That's me, yeah?" He said, a bit more quietly.
"Um, yes, Ronald, I thought that would be obvious. Did you think I would make it Dudley?" Harry asked and Hermione's face slowly turned to slight mortification.
"Well I mean, yeah, but I guess it's just a different thing actually hearing it, you know?" Ron beamed toward them both through his mouth full of toast as he took a big bite.
"Well, I'm glad you're pleased. Ginny will be the maid of honor. I don't think there's any contest. Oh! Yes!" Hermione stood up from her chair and waved toward Ravenclaw table, where Luna was investigating and admiring what looked like an ordinary rock the size of a teapot. "Luna! Did you want to be a bridesmaid?"
"Oh, yes!" Luna said in a very slow, dreamy voice as she smiled at Hermione with her big, blue eyes. "That would be wonderful! My day just got a little brighter!"
The dirty blonde Ravenclaw girl made her way to the front of the hall, going to the staff table and getting a quill from her side pack. Then she pulled out a long piece of parchment.
"Daddy would love an article about your marriage. Should we try and find Rita Skeeter again?" She asked, somehow dripping ink onto the parchment with no well in sight.
There was a pause, and both Harry and Hermione looked at one another. This was a fair question, when you got right down to it. Hermione was already shaking her head before anyone even spoke.
"No, I don't want that savage insect destroying our day with her lies." She said, but couldn't shake the worried look off her face. There wasn't a very large abundance of writers when it came to articles and nonfiction pieces. "We may need to hire a professional."
"Nonsense." All of them heard a voice from the other side of the headmistress. They turned to see a dark haired, bright skinned wizard who looked to be in his mid thirties, but also looked weathered somewhat. He wore blue robes with yellow patterns across it, including his short pointed hat that jutted down and back over his long hair. "I happen to be an artist who specializes in both visual and opinion pieces." The man with the thick goatee and black eyes smiled at all of them as he rose and extended his hand to the two of them. "Professor Elonzo Phillippe Mizar, at your service."
"Ah, so, there you are." Harry said, forgetting to have any sort of social skills of any sort. "I've heard your name many times since we arrived."
"Well, I can't say any different for you, Professor Potter. This will be my second year teaching here, but already your class is on route to becoming the favorite. Miss Granger, my lady, it's an honor, both of you." He nodded his head, then turned to Ron. "And Mr. Weasley."
Ron's attention snapped back to Mizar, who was smiling warmly toward him. "Yeah? Me?" He pointed to himself, confused.
"I seem to recall you playing your role in that final battle, Mr. Weasley. You protected those younger students against the monster, Greyback." His expression turned grave for a moment, and the frown on his face became pronounced. "I will not forget what all three of you did for this school. I've already talked to Professor Longbottom, he has my full support, as all of you do." He nodded low toward them. "And so, if you do not mind, I would be more than happy to write a piece on your wedding and submit it to the Quibbler, with your permission, Miss Lovegood."
"Oh, that sounds wonderful, Professor Mizar, thank you. That would be so kind. If you would like, I could tell father that you can do artwork for the articles as well. Your art is so beautiful, though, I will say the blue period did depress me a little." Luna said as she handed him the quill and the parchment, which he took with a chuckle.
"Yes, that was the intended effect, though only on a surface level. Never should art truly throw someone into distress." He nodded to her, then turned to the three of them. "Now, I will get back to you later. Not only will I write your article under your instruction, but I also have a gift for the two of you. Consider it a wedding gift."
"A gift?" Harry asked,, then turned to Hermione, whose eyebrows went straight up into her bangs. "You didn't go out of your way, did you?"
"Good sir, this is something I need to do and I want you to have it. It is a simple piece of art that I made with practical materials. There was no unneeded time lost, I assure you." He spoke warmly and Hermione cleared her throat.
"That sounds lovely. Of course we'll accept." As Hermione said this, Professor Mizar beamed at the two of them. "What time is good for you this evening?"
"Ah, yes, my final class ends at four. Come to my classroom anytime after that, I will be continuing my everlong pursuit of restoring as many pieces of art as I can."
"That's right! You repainted Sir Cadogan." Ron said with a somewhat sour expression. Hermione gave him a dreadful glare and he shrugged. "What? The guy's barking."
"Ah, yes, Sir Cadogan. No amount of height I gave him was enough. Tonight, I will be painting a large wine cellar with three monks maintaining them. It has been a popular request for months now." He shook his head, "but, I digress, Professor Potter, if you have time to pull yourself away from your many fans, I will await you and Professor Granger in my classroom. The bell is soon to come and I must bid you adieu." He bowed to the lot of them and departed.
"Right, that's my cue." Ron got up and put his broom over his shoulder. "Are you wearing your Quidditch uniform?" He asked Harry, who got up from his chair. It was true, the robes did resemble the shape of his Quidditch garments.
"Well, I don't have the pads, but yeah, I even got the seven on the back." He turned and revealed it. Only, instead of Gryffindor, it simply read "Potter" above it. "I plan to do a few laps tonight."
"Brilliant! I'll stay on the pitch for you. I've been meaning to do a bit of practice myself." Ron grinned and Harry nodded. Both of them clapped their hands into a shake, followed briefly by the first bell.
They bid their farewells and Ron made his way out to the pitch. He didn't have a class for another hour and a half, but Hooch was going to ride him all day if he didn't get the setup done. He needed to set up all of the Quidditch practice balls, water grass, paint lines, pick up trash.
Once all of the boring stuff was done, though, he'd have a bottle of pumpkin juice with his lunch. Then he was free to fly around and watch the kids practice Quidditch, practice flying, giggle on the bleachers, normal stuff that let Ron relax for a bit until Madam Hooch came flying by. He'd act busy with something until she was off the pitch once again.
On several occasions, he would start getting questions. He would make one off comments about something so fantastical that many did not believe him. Then, when they realized that he had, in fact, been on a great many of Harry Potter's adventures, it was as if he had made a new best friend every single day. He started getting bribes of candy, fake wands and even a couple of batting eyelashes his way. It seemed Ron Weasley was garnering a bit of a following himself.
Today, however, something strange happened. Ron looked over to see someone waving at him from the stands, calling his name. He squinted as he flew over on his Cleansweep Eleven broomstick. He thought it was yet another story hound come to offer him a treacle tart if he divulged the story behind the dragon in Gringotts Bank, but that was when he saw a familiar face..
"Padma?" Ron asked, then became sure of it when he saw her Ravenclaw robes. "Hey! Long time no see." He got low on his broom as he approached her.
"Yes! I was surprised to see you didn't come back as a student. Are you a professor now?" Padma asked, admiring his broomstick.
"Oh, no. That's Harry and Hermione. I'm a broomstick trainer and a Quidditch referee." He said with some pride, and was surprised that she widened her eyes.
"You already have a job at Hogwarts? That's amazing. I hope I can do something like that. I never want to leave this place." He admitted. The darker skinned girl smiled and he nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, I live in Hogsmeade. Some bloke is letting me rent his house and I might even be able to buy it if I can work a few things out." Ron said, once again taken aback by Padma's utter astonishment.
"Do you think you could put in the good word for me? Living in Hogsmeade, it wouldn't be a far move after this year is done." Padma said, and the melancholy tone was not lost on Ron.
Things were very different for their year in Hogwarts. The class of 1991 - 1998 had the bad luck of being at Hogwarts while a dark lord was gaining power and his target was directly in their midst. The school had become something more than just a school to them after such an experience. After so much fear, leaning into one another, helping each other survive the hardships. Then, to prevail after so much sacrifice and suffering. It was as if leaving Hogwarts was leaving their entire world for a lesser, ill-fitting world that didn't want them.
"Do you still have…" Ron began, but before he could even finish, they both pulled out their coins that looked so much like galleons. Every D.A. member wore this coin like a badge of honor and showed it off to anyone who knew its worth. "I thought so." He smiled and she smiled back.
"It never leaves my pocket unless I'm changing clothes." She admitted and he nodded.
"Yeah, I even put it on the soap dish in the shower. It's like my talisman." He admitted as well, and she began to laugh. "So, um, if you want, after we're done here, you can come take a look at my place. If you like old houses that have some nice fireplaces, I think you'll like it."
"You would do that?" Padma beamed at him as he nodded. "That sounds wonderful! Do you think they have other houses for sale? I'd love to have one before I graduated." She said as she leaned on the front railing around the field.
"Couldn't tell you. This one just sort of fell into my lap. For all I know, Hogsmeade is rented up for the year." He said, then began to notice the look of panic in her eye and her crestfallen expression. "Now, don't fret, Padma. Tell you what. If you can't find a place, I'll rent you my guestroom. It's just got all my extra, uuhhh… decorations." His ears went a little pink as he looked off to the side, making sure a couple of third year students didn't race too fast around their small part of the pitch. Ron found out that his collection of Chudley Cannon merchandise had reached highly critical levels. So much so that he decorated his room with his favorite pillows, wall scrolls and picture frames and was still able to amply cover the walls of his guest bedroom.
Padma's mouth hung open. She stared at him for a long moment and he could only look back at her with a puzzled expression. "What? I got a thing for Quidditch and the Chudley Cannons. I've always said that Galvan Gudgeon is the best seeker in the league, aside from Harry."
"Yeah, Harry Potter's still making some waves around Hogwarts, even when he's a professor." Padma giggled a little and Ron scoffed.
"Well, yeah, he's Harry. He doesn't even try to, it just sort of happens. Then, he'll have a laugh and make some for himself. He could've proposed to Hermione quietly in his room, couldn't he? He was just wanting to make a show of it." He smiled and Padma was nodding.
"It's nice to be popular for something good once in a while. Now that it's all sorted out." Padma nodded and Ron wholeheartedly agreed.
The two of them made a promise to meet on the pitch after classes were finished, and Ron went on patrolling on his broomstick. No sooner did he start flying around the field when Madam Hooch started her rounds. He sighed with some relief at his good fortune.
"There you have it, the proper way to pickle your eel brains so that you get the juice through the wrinkles. If anyone needs a proper demonstration at their cauldron, do not hesitate to ask." Hermione said as she washed her hands at the basin beside her desk and then went back to her cauldron.
"Miss Granger, may I have more stink sap?" A small voice asked from the corner and Hermione brightened.
"Yes! Of course, Professor Longbottom has given me a great deal of it. You need a full teaspoon, Violet?"
"Yes, please." Violet Inkling-Boma said as she uncorked a small vial of spider venom. Hermione smiled as she dropped the small bit into her cauldron, allowing her to begin stirring in the venom.
"It's coming along very nicely. Are you understanding all of the instructions?" She asked, and there was a small chortle from the other side of the room. The small Hufflepuff girl looked across at the Slytherin side and blushed, going back to stirring the cauldron. Violet nodded to Hermione.
She turned around to notice two of the Slytherin girls were working on their potions while also chatting to one another. "Excuse me, ladies, was there something wrong? Did you need something?"
"We just weren't surprised a muggleborn needed help with potions class." Bridgette, a darker skinned witch from Slytherin added three cricket legs to the cauldron as she stirred.
"It's very easy to undershoot stink sap and I just so happen to be muggleborn myself. Were there any more concerns I could lay to rest?" Hermione asked, as both Slytherins took on a sudden look of embarrassment and contempt toward her.
As Professor Granger turned to Crow, he proudly showed off the contents of his cauldron. She gave a nod and beam of approval. As she lauded his effective stirring technique and rich amber color liquid, Bridgette turned to Agnes once again, making a comment about mudbloods and amber liquids.
"Perhaps Professor Granger was speaking a language you don't understand, Snake-wife. Did you need me to give English lessons?" A very strange Hufflepuff girl said as she lifted her bright tan wand of birchwood. She was tall with long, wild fiery red hair. Her eyes were covered by two bronze goggles with solid red lenses.
"Now, Alexis, let us not resort to–" Before Hermione could finish her sentence, Agnes, a mad-looking girl with short hair from Slytherin grew a huge grin on her face as she drew her wand.
"Titillando!" Agnes shouted as she aimed her hex wide. It passed through Alexis Hargroom's red curly hair.
You didn't need to see Alexis' eyes to see she was affronted. The tall Hufflepuff girl snarled and pointed her wand to return fire. "Confringo!"
She shot a bolt of fire, though she didn't aim for Agnes. Alexis aimed for the bottom of her cauldron. The fire curse hit the lumber beneath it, causing the wood to ignite in a flash and causing the liquid inside to explode.
There came a cascade of potion all over Bridgette and Agnes, causing both of them to scream and start crying uncontrollably. Large, disgusting tears began pouring down their faces before Hermione was able to cast the cleaning charm on both of them.
"Tergeo!" She said as her wand absorbed the incomplete crying draught. She quickly applied an antidote to both of them before assigning Alexis and Agnes detention. She also took five points from both Slytherin and Hufflepuff. Like a good teacher, though, she did not hold a grudge, nor did she rub it in their faces, unlike some potion masters. As good as Snape turned out to be and as brilliant a potions master he was, he was a dreadful teacher. How Harry received his O.W.L. in potions under such horrible tutelage was anyone's guess.
"That's giving to them!" Ron said as he dug into his meat pie and potatoes. "That Alexis girl's got the right idea!"
The three of them sat at the staff table at lunchtime. Harry didn't pay much attention to their conversation, though that didn't stop him from passing them odd glances as he caught phrases.
"No, Ron, a classroom is not a battlefield." Hermione said as she placed her spoon into an empty soup bowl.
"Hoi, that Slytherin cast the first hex! The Hufflepuff shouldn't have gotten detention for that." Ron countered, pointing his fork at her.
"I was fully capable of ending the fight without her direct involvement and I was quick to tell her as such. Next time she will know to let me counter curse the spell and discipline as needed. I would also appreciate you letting me penalize my students as I see fit, Ronald!" She spat his name, causing him to recoil.
"Are you two done with your little row? Why is it we're getting married and you two are acting like the old married couple?" Harry asked as he read the seventh year Dark Arts textbook, which shared the class's name.
"Is there anything new we haven't seen in that textbook?" Ron asked, receiving a "no" from both of them.
"I've read it front to back. We've encountered worse." Hermione assured him. "That's not including Voldemort." She said, noting Ron's flinch was getting harder to notice.
"So weird, I heard we're going into some history books too. Looks like being Harry's friends got us a bit of fame for ourselves. "People actually know my name and everything. No chocolate frog card yet though."
Then, as if the stars were aligned and the heavens shined down on Ron's statement, a child at the Gryffindor table lifted up something in his hand and shouted, "Harry Potter!"
All eyes turned to Donovan Tomes, who sat next to Ryan at the Gryffindor table. Both of them were jumping excitedly, babbling as if they'd won a trip to Cancun for the summer.
Without further context or warning, Donovan got out of his table bench and began to sprint toward the staff table. Harry gave him a puzzled look until he got to him and showed him something that made him nearly burst with laughter.
"No way! Let me see that!" Ron said to Donovan, who eyed him apprehensively. He complied, though and he held up the Chocolate Frog card featuring Harry Potter. The image on the card gave Ron a smile and a wave before he turned it over.
"Harry Potter, also known as "the boy who lived" was the only known wizard to survive the killing curse, cast by Lord Voldemort. He fought the evil dark lord multiple times before his final defeat of Voldemort in 1998." Ron read from the card before looking at Donovan with some jealousy. "I'll give you ten galleons for it."
"You'll what?! I don't think so, I'll have it back, I think." Donovan demanded before Ron relented with some hesitation. That was when he beamed toward Harry and held it up to him with a pinkening face. He pulled out a quill and held them both up to him.
Harry gave him a bemused smile as if he were just absolutely adorable. He chortled, taking the card and quill, writing his name in connected letters and adding "Your favorite DADA teacher". To which his picture counterpart pointed and gave him a smile and thumbs up.
"Wow, thanks!" Don said as he beamed a smile at him. He took the card back and ran back to the Gryffindor table, swarmed by his peers who clamored to look at his amazing possession.
"Damn, going to need to buy more chocolate frogs to see if I can get us." Ron said, still feeling very strange that he wasn't in possession of his own card.
The bell rang for the next period and everyone began to rise from the great hall. True to their word, both Harry and Hermione met in the fourth floor hall, waiting for the fifth year students to exit Professor Mizar's classroom. Many of the fifth years paused as they saw who was outside of the classroom. Though, many of them were Slytherins, so, it was more panic than awe that jolted them.
They entered the professor's class as he was working on the painting of the vineyard monks. All around him paintings of portraits, landscapes, villagers, aristocrats, wizards, witches and politicians lined every wall. A few of the paintings noticed the couple and began echoes of their names throughout the room.
Mizar turned to both of them with a very wide smile. "Ah! Excellent! My friends, meet Harry Potter and Hermione Granger, the soon-to-be!"
There was a triumphant cheer from all around the room. Dogs barked from fences, clowns clapped and set off sparklers while a farmer merely shrugged and kept tending the one cabbage planted in the ground in front of him.
"Thank you." Hermione twisted her fingers in embarrassment as her face went pink.
"Thank you both for your prompt arrival." Mizar started to say before a half colored monk waved from his current work in progress.
"Oi! You've barely started on us today." The monk told him through a face sketched in graphite.
"Apologies, friend, but I have a prior engagement." He said as he turned to the two of them again. "I heard one of my house was less than courteous today." He said to Hermione as he prepared his stationary.
"Oh, are you Slytherin house?" Hermione asked and the dark haired wizard nodded.
"Soon to be head of house, once the year is through and Slughorn passes on his mantles to the both of us." He chuckled along with her as he prepared his quill with a proper amount of ink.
"Agnes seems to be rather impulsive." Hermione commented and Professor Mizar scoffed with a nod.
"I whole-heartedly agree with her punishment, as I told her when Miss Vostok tried to have it appealed. I have chosen her to clean Slytherin dungeons this Saturday while her wand is in my possession. Elbow grease is a fitting deterrent in my experience." Mizar smiled and Harry's smile in return was genuine. He remembered Ron learning that lesson very quickly as he barfed up slugs while polishing Quidditch trophies.
"I agree, Professor Mizar." Hermione nodded, obviously glad to see that even one of Agnes's own house agreed with her teaching methods.
"Oh, please, call me Phillip." He said as he wrote a header on the parchment. "Now, do you remember the day you two first met?"
"September 1st, 1991." Harry said with no hesitation, much to both of their astonishment. "What? It was our first day at Hogwarts. I had just met Ron and we were eating pumpkin pasties in our train cart when you came in with Neville, looking for his toad, Trevor."
"Do you possess a photographic memory, Mr. Potter?" Mizar asked in a clearly impressed voice.
"It just so happened to be the happiest day of my life at the time. I may remember a thing or two. I remember noticing her hair was a whole wave of beautiful curls and she had a rather bossy tone to her voice." Harry smiled at her as she stared at him, speechless. "I really fell in love with her sixth year."
"Do go on." Mizar smiled as he wrote, scribbling very fast as Harry spoke. "What happened?"
"She was helping me with my astronomy homework. It was comparing muggle and wizarding stargazing. She opened the window to let in starlight and moonlight. It got to the point where I couldn't even look at the essay anymore. She was… gorgeous." Harry said and Mizar nodded, still writing at a gallop. Then he looked to Hermione who put her hand on his arm.
She got close to his ear and whispered. "Harry, maybe we should talk about this together first. You didn't tell me any of this." Hermione spoke as inaudibly as she could while also trying her best to contain herself. "I want you to kiss me all over." She breathed so far under her breath and he grew a very solid few inches more within his trousers.
"Right," Harry started again, "so now that our time as students is over, we decided to make a life for ourselves and that included getting married."
"Very good, very good. Where are you planning your honeymoon?" Mizar asked, smiling as the two of them looked at each other with blank expressions. "Alright, how about the ceremony?"
"We know we don't want a very large ceremony," Hermione finally spoke aloud. "Everything we do always has so much publicity, you'd think I had a scar on my forehead."
Both Mizar and Harry burst out laughing at this, making Hermione smile as she hid her face with her hand. The art professor pulled a small paintbrush from his desk.
"Here, Hermione, I'll paint you one, free of charge." He waved the brush at her and she started a silent laughter that gave her very little room to breathe.
After a good long moment, there seemed to be plenty of material to give to the Quibbler and Mizar put it away, only to bring out a very large snow globe that must have been ten inches in diameter.
It was a snow globe that looked like the wood base had a beautiful lacquered, deep brown finish. The glass was obviously crystal and the cabin inside looked like someone could actually live in it. There was even a light on inside showing through the small windows. It was covered in a thick layer of snow, along with the ground around it.
"Merlin's beard!" Hermione looked at it from every angle that she was able. "It's beautiful." She said as a snow flurry pasted the globe's cabin. The light inside even flickered as if it were an active fireplace.
"And you didn't go out of your way?" Harry asked, finding that hard to believe, especially when he was fairly certain a row of small planks like the ones on this cabin looked straighter than an actual cabin wall. Such craftsmanship must have been maddening, even for a wizard.
"I will admit, I outdid myself with this one. However, Harry, Hermione, there is another thing you should understand." He began and they listened closely. "I'm sure you've heard I was an Auror. I fought dark wizards for five years. In that time, I started to find a darker part of myself that I didn't like. The more heartless and grotesque they were, the more unforgiving I became. I killed eighteen of them. This was after Voldemort was brought back in 1995. I remember that night a little too well."
The sudden flash of green, followed by the spread eagle body of Cedric Diggory came to Harry's mind and any humor there was left the room.
"I'm not going to lie, there was corruption in the ministry early in Fudge's term. The fact that you helped bring down that hag, Umbridge, was another cause of celebration." That lightened the mood considerably, all of a sudden. A smile spread across all of their faces suddenly.
"You read the papers, have you?" As Harry was saying it, Mizar pulled out the copy and opened it straight to the article.
"I will be framing this, yes. That is one problem solved. Now, you two need to scurry about the details of this little union you wish to bring about. This," he tapped the parchment on his disk, which he slid over to them, "is for your reference. Add to it and we will put it all in words fit for royalty." Mizar rose from his chair, and they both took that to mean the meeting was adjourned.
That was when he held his hands over the snow globe and pushed it toward them. "Make sure you put this in a place you want to keep cold. It never gets warmer."
"Professor Mizar," Hermione called his attention as he handed the globe to Harry, "if you don't mind me asking, what made you want to teach art?"
"After being an Auror? See, this is much more to my liking. This is much more like retirement. With an added bonus of being able to protect the children, should I need to." Mizar smiled at both of them and Hermione nodded, thinking this was a perfectly adequate answer. "Now, before you go, Harry, I need to talk about Draco."
"Oh, brilliant, have I killed his dog this time around?" Harry asked and Hermione rolled her eyes, sadly thinking Draco could sink that low, given the chance.
"No, Professor, not this time. This time, he was showing some extreme concerns with his own feelings toward you. There is a lot of jealousy, a lot of resentment toward himself and a lot of admiration toward your accomplishments. He also expresses deep regret for calling Hermione an assortment of names." At every word spoken, both of their expressions turned gradually deeper into shock and confusion.
"This is Draco Malfoy we're talking about, correct?" Harry asked and Professor Mizar sat back in his desk chair with a knowing smile.
"Yes, he has spent many hours in my office, talking to my portraits, talking to me and crying for a spell." As soon as he said this, images of Draco crying in a bathroom stall, while being comforted by Moaning Myrtle. "As hard as it is to believe, he has come a long way. He used to think he just hated you for who you are. More and more, I think he started to see that he wanted what you had without any of the cost."
"Harry certainly didn't become famous for starring in a diaper ad." Hermione said, drawing a small bit of laughter and a surprised look from Harry.
"Yes, well, thank you, Professor Mizar." His thoughts went back to the other night with Malfoy in the entrance hall. Perhaps his words had been a bit more damaging than he thought. A pang of guilt and pity for the lad came to Harry. Had he done that much damage? "I will take that into consideration next time I interact with him."
"Thank you, I really do appreciate that. Now, if you do not mind. I must now tend to the monks." He rose from his chair to thunderous cheers from all of the portraits in the room, including the sketched and uncolored monks in the work in progress.
"Your paintings are amazing, Phillip. How many artworks have you done for Hogwarts' halls?" Hermione asked as she rose to leave.
"Three hundred and ninety eight. I plan to have my four hundredth painting celebration in the coming year. Thank you for asking, I take great pride in my work." Professor smiled as he motioned toward many paintings on his wall. A whole crowd of people in many of the paintings on his wall bowed and cheered. "Before I die, I plan to return every single painting to their former glory."
With that, they bid him farewell. It was a rather brisk walk from his office to the staff quarters on the other side of the castle. After a quick check on Hermione's homework cauldrons for her next few weeks of classes, the two of them removed any clothing that impeded them.
Seeing Hermione rush to get naked in front of him, her breasts dropping from her bra as her robes hit the floor. Harry needed only to take off his pants and boxer shorts. Within minutes, they were kissing on top of their bed. True to her request, Harry began to kiss all over her body. He licked, began to suck on her nipples. This made her look at him lovingly, tracing a hand through his messy hair. This look made him kiss her lips all the more, with his tongue drifting through her mouth.
"We have to be fast, remember? We have things." She said and he was nodding, muttering that he knew. She nodded back, kissing him once again as she rolled over on top of him on the bed.
In the interest of rushing a bit, she slid him into her, knowing she was very well lubricated. The pounding she began to give him drew fiery ecstasy through her. He was hard as a rock and only flaring within her as he pushed straight against her pelvis.
She wailed into his mouth as she kissed him harder! The orgasm she had squeezed him without relent for four seconds straight. Then her tunnel began to spasm around him as he returned the banging she had given to him.
Many would ask, as wizards and witches engaged in carnal pleasures, wouldn't they bring magic into the bedsheets. That may have been true for other couples and there was always room to experimentation, but that was not now. They were both raised by muggles, and they both felt as though the experience possessed enough magic within it already.
This was especially true as Harry pounded into her once more, releasing a generous amount of spunk within her uterus. Hermione whimpered hard against his lips as she closed her eyes tight. She wasn't sure if that was three orgasms within the span of a minute or one continuously flaring orgasm within her. Whatever it was, she was breathless, gazing into his eyes as if memorizing the exact shade of green for her own memory.
"I love you, Harry." She whispered to him and he kissed her ever so softly. His hands explored her body all over as he pressed their lips together and only pulled back a little. With their lips barely touching, he returned her love. He spoke so quietly but his lips moved against hers. His sweat mixed with hers as their bodies rubbed together and his semen intermixed with her juice within her.
All of the afterglow was wonderful and what was supposed to be a quickie turned into something of a gem that would remain in their memories. However, that was when Hermione checked her watch, and proclaimed that both of them were very late.
"Boy, you sure had a good time, whatever you're doing." Ron said as Harry rushed out on the pitch with his red robes and pads.
"Yeah, meeting went on longer than I expected." Harry said, then went into the story about the huge snow globe, and how Malfoy seemed to be cracking up.
"Well, after a life of wickedness, he'd better get started on making the nice list." Ron said as both of them started flying around the pitch on their brooms at a leisurely pace. The pitch was empty as the students began their evening activities elsewhere. Quidditch practice was over and they had it to themselves.
"Can't help but feel a little sorry for him. Then again, that does translate to him being rather pitiful. Hard to believe I considered him some sort of rival once upon a time." Harry had outclassed Malfoy on so many occasions. It didn't matter if it was the Quidditch games, the battlefield or who had the last laugh by the end of the year. Either way you looked at it, if he were a villain, he'd be in the "defeated" category.
"Alright, what do you say to a bit of catch?" Ron said as he grabbed a tennis ball from his pocket. Harry grinned at him and bolted off. The two of them started performing a few spirals and dives. Every so often, they would throw the tennis ball. Whether it was directly on course or not, they normally caught it. There were a few times they had to use the summoning charm, though.
Then came the portion of their game where they deliberately tried to get them to go long. It took a lot of precision and a lot of speed while keeping your eye on the ball. Harry outclassed Ron at this part of it, but he was no slouch in his own right.
"Oh, blimey, Harry! I got to get going." Ron checked his watch and looked around to see that, yes, indeed, there was a smiling Padma Patil standing near the entrance to the Quidditch pitch.
As soon as Harry saw her, his broom came to a sudden halt and his eyes darted directly at Ron. "Really?" Harry didn't even attempt to hide his grin as he looked at his old mate.
"Yeah, catch you tomorrow." Ron said quickly before flying straight down toward her and dismounting next to her. "You ready?"
"Yes." Padma said as she waved to Harry. Then she started to walk with Ron toward Hogsmeade.