A Different Kind of Epilogue

Authors Note – Hey all, sorry for the tardiness of this chapter, I know I said monthly but the Christmas Period caused me to have a bit of writers block and I didn't get back into the right frame of mind until a few days ago, allowing me to finish the second half of this chapter with ease. Hopefully I can keep up with the monthly schedule for the rest of the year.

Thanks to all those that have read, reviewed, followed and favourited. On to the chapter…

Chapter Nine – Flashback

It had been a month since Daphne had left like a woman on a mission and from the regular updates she had been providing Harry and Hermione she was quite effectively running rings around Percy Weasley.

"Who would have thought promising her a chance at Lady Black would provide the fire we needed." Hermione said into Harry's chest as they lay in the master bedroom of Grimmauld Place. Since moving into Grimmauld, Hermione and Harry had settled into a habit of dropping the children at primary school and then returning home to then enjoy some alone time before progressing their day.

They continued to lay there in comfortable silence until Harry suddenly spoke up. "I'm sorry Hermione." Kissing the top of her head.

Hermione looked up into his eyes, a confused look on her face. "What are you apologising for Harry?"

"I never even thought to ask if you were ok with me offering that to Daphne, I just jumped at the opportunity to get you what you want. I know from what Andi has told me I can have multiple wives and I should have considered your feelings sooner…"

Hermione, realising that Harry feared losing her spoke quickly "Harry, I told Daphne I'm glad it's her, as I knew this was going to happen. Although we age slower as magical people, we're almost 40 Harry and although I agreed to give you as many Potters as you wanted, I meant specifically that. I don't want to be pumping out babies until you've got three boys, one for each house. Please know Harry, you've not hurt but helped me. I may not be happy to share you, but I'll feel better knowing the burden of providing you heirs is shared." She said the last few words and then kissed him with what felt like the passion and heat of a thousand suns.

The panic that had ensnared Harry was washed away by Hermione's words and the passion of her kiss. "Thank you Hermione, I know you've explained it to me before, but I don't think I'll ever understand what I've done to earn your love and trust."

After spending some time just enjoying the feel of each other in bed, they get up together and continue getting the house ready. It turns out finding out that one parent had effectively trapped your other parent in a relationship and lied for almost two decades damages your relationship and once the boys had spent time talking to each other they'd both agreed that the only father they wanted was Harry. Additionally Rose, who had really only inherited her hair and a dislike for Slytherin from the Weasleys, who had begun getting bombarded by letters from her father and grandmother attempting to sour her relationship with her mother and uncle reached out to her mother for a detailed breakdown and took her mother's side the moment she heard it.
Given all this, they were rushing to get Grimmauld ready to host an additional 3 teenagers, Harry and Hermione had already cleaned most of the areas for their little family (3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, kitchen, living and dining and, of course, the library) but most of the other rooms were still locked down with concerns regarding the storage of dangerous artifacts.

As Harry and Hermione were most of the way cleaning the second of three bedrooms they required, Hermione suddenly laughed.

"Did you find something entertaining that isn't trying to kill you?" Harry asked with a laugh.

"No, no, I was just remembering one of the last Sunday Burrow dinners we attended..."

***Flashback***

Harry was feeling nervous, he had been pushing back again and again on attending one of these Sunday Weasley dinners but George and Arthur had cornered him in Diagon Alley not being happy to leave until Harry agreed.

Harry had hated avoiding them, as he only really held Molly, Ron and Ginny at fault so when George looked dejected after Harry went to say no for what felt like the 10th time he caved and agreed to attend. The main reason he was avoiding it, was that he was worried he'd get caught in lies or cover stories regarding their divorce and the sudden changes in his and Hermione's relationship. Both Ginny and Ron had indicated that they wanted to keep a lot of the developments covered up and given the amount of hurt that would be caused to members of the Weasley family that they still cared about, both Hermione and Harry had agreed.

Deciding that the only way to get rid of these nerves was to push forward, he stepped up to the apparition point at Grimmauld and vanished with a twist, he'd decided on apparition over the Floo as he didn't want to walk right into the middle of the Weasley's if he could avoid it. As he appeared outside the wards of The Burrow Harry saw Bill and George levitating tables and chairs out the garden which put a smile on his face, as he stepped to go through the wards however the smile quickly vanished. The house wards had pushed back against him, although he could easily push his way through, he thought it best not to set any alarms off so took a step back and sent a messenger Patronus to Arthur.

"Hi Mr. Weasley, it's Harry. House wards aren't letting me through, would someone be able to come get me?"

As his stag Patronus bounced its way towards The Burrow, he noticed that George and Bill were rushing inside. Harry quickly realised that his attempt to walk through the wards must have triggered an alarm regardless. Well lost in thought on the topic, Harry was suddenly startled by the sound of Bill's voice.

"Harry mate, sorry about this. We've no idea why the wards considered you a threat. Here take my hand and I'll walk you through the wards as a guest, and I'll sort out the wards after everyone has left.

"Thanks Bill and it's all good, maybe someone accidently scratched me off" Harry said with a laugh.

He'd always liked Bill, the time they spent at Shell Cottage shortly after the Malfoy Manor incident was a warm spot in an otherwise cold period of Harry's life.

"So, Harry, I hear you've been avoiding us" Bill said with a grin on his face as they walked towards The Burrow.

"Not avoiding, just busy. When I moved back into Grimmauld I realised how much work was going to be required to make it a home…." Harry responded, worried Bill might question him further.

"To be honest, I don't know anything about what broke your marriage apart Harry, and I won't ask, and I certainly won't hold it against you if you didn't want to be around Ginny this evening. I don't know if I'd be able to do what you're doing were Fleur and I were to be divorced." Bill said with a serious tone. "I'm glad you were the better man however, you're like my 5th little brother and I know George feels the same. As far as I'm concerned Harry you'll always be an honorary Weasley." He said as he clapped Harry on the shoulder.

"Thanks Bill" Harry said as they walked through the front door of The Burrow, he wondered if that opinion would stay the same once they find out Hermione and him…

As always, The Burrow was a din of noise whether it was the sound of cooking from the kitchen, questions yelled across the house or children screaming as they played. It gave Harry a sense of nostalgia.

"HARRY!" Arthur's voice suddenly broke him from his thoughts. "Good to see you again, I don't know if he told you but Bill's going to take a look at the wards after dinner. You of all people are more than welcome within out home." Arthur continued with a smile.

"Thanks Mr. Weasley, anything I can do to help get things ready?" Harry asked.

"Actually, if you wouldn't mind trying to round up all the kids that would be great, I think Lily and Hugo are out by the lake and the older ones are flying around the orchard." Arthur responded quickly.

"Not a problem Mr Weasley." Harry said, turning to head out the door again.

Lily had come earlier in the day to spend some time with the Weasley side of the family, she'd not spent much time with them as Harry had been concerned about Ginny or Molly doing something but in this situation he felt more comfortable with so many other Weasley's around.

As Mr. Weasley had told him, he found the two youngest chasing each other around the lake, while James, Rose and Albus were racing each other on Brooms around the orchard. The older children especially were excited to Harry, Harry had submitted a request for the three of them to be able to leave the grounds for the weekend to spend time with family. Professor McGonagall had been more than happy to approve it, saying "I know Mr. Potter that you wouldn't ask if it wasn't for a good reason." The boys hadn't seen Harry since the Winter break and it was then that they'd let him know they wanted to move in with him. Rose would tell Hermione later in the evening.

As Harry reapproached the house with the children in tow, he noticed that everyone was already outside, either seated at the table or bringing food out. Ron was hovering around his brothers, while Hermione stood chatting amicably with Fleur. Arthur, Molly and Ginny were carrying food out to the table, which once the kids saw all broke out into a sprint.
Harry laughed to himself, this image, one of a large family all getting together and having fun, was what he had wanted and it made him feel sad for what could have been had the whole potion dosing saga not occurred.

As Harry looked up he noticed that Hermione was wearing the Potter mistress collar and smiled to himself, wondering if anyone would ask. He knew that the Weasley's were an old family but not one that followed any of the old traditions, nor taught their children, therefore it was possible that none of them even knew what it meant and thought Hermione was just wearing an interesting piece of jewellery.

Hermione looked away from Fleur and noticed Harry looking at her, causing a smile break out across her face. "HARRY!" She yelled out and ran towards him, giving him a token Hermione hug. Harry spun her around and then placed her down. It was difficult for him to resist the urge to kiss her, thinking it best not to rock the boat before dinner.

" 'Arry, it is wonderful to see you. I will admit owever to not being as excited as 'Ermione here." Fleur said with a grin.

"Fleur, it is wonderful to see you as well, I hope Victorie, Dominique and Louis aren't giving you trouble?" Harry asked, ignoring Fleur comment and his arms still around Hermione, although both Harry and Hermione began to blush.

"No more than teenagers should for zeir mozzer, I assure you. I am curious to find out ow you're holding up after everyzing, but somezing tells me zat is a better discussion wiz food and drink in front of us. Let us head over!" said Fleur as she spun and began walking towards the table.

Hermione pulled away gently from Harry and they both began following Fleur. "Fleur recognised the collar almost the moment she saw it. She has been drilling me for information away from everyone" Hermione suddenly said quietly. "I wanted to let you know before we sat down so that she didn't blind side you like she did me."

As Harry and Hermione approached the table Harry noticed that although the kids were mixed amongst the adults, there appeared to be a clear split on the table with partners up one end and the Weasley clan down the other. Harry ended up sitting right down the end of the table, with Hermione on his left and Fleur opposite. James and Rose were at on Hermione's left and Audry and Angelina on Fleur's right. Once everyone was seated, Arthur stood to say some words.

"I won't take long, you all know I'm not one for speeches but given the year we've had I thought it important. Uh, I just wanted to say that it warms my heart to have the wider Weasley family together, I know some aren't legally members of the family anymore but that doesn't change anything in my eyes. Once a Weasley, always a Weasley." Once he finished, he held up his glass and most people at the table raised their own glass with a loud "Here here." from those with their glasses raised.

Once Arthur sat down everyone broke out into their own conversations, with Ron, Ginny and George breaking into a conversation about Quidditch. Charlie & Bill start discussing their careers and Audry and Angelina started drilling James and Rose about school. Fleur however seemed to be patiently waiting for Harry and Hermione to be ready to talk.

As everyone finished dishing up and the sound of cutlery on plates and bowls joined the sound of voices, Fleur spoke up in a low voice.

"So.. Ow did this begin eh? I won't lie, I was surprised zat you didn't end up togezer back in school after everyzing, but I did not pick you for the type to ave an affair." Fleur said, completely ignoring her food. Harry noticed that although Audry seemed engaged in the discussion with the kids to his left, she appeared a little distracted.

Hermione looked to Harry, as if waiting for him to speak and then placed a hand on his leg bringing him back to their chat. "Ahh right, well I can't really go into too much detail. I can say that this started quite some time after my divorce and that our…connection… wasn't the cause of the divorce." Harry tried to stay as generic as possible to throw any eavesdroppers off.

"Well, let me tell you that boz of you seem much appier now, does your usband know Ermione?" Fleur followed on.

"Yes, he was actually the driver that brought us together initially." Hermione said matter of factly. "The man I'm married too got our family into an obscene amount of debt which led us to being at risk of some rather dire consequences, but Harry here stepped in and took care of it all and I've taken the initiative to pay him back."

Harry was surprised at how candid she was being with the others, especially since Audry had dropped all pretence of listening to Angelina and the kids and was now paying 100% attention to their discussion.

"I see, so it's purely a business transaction then?" Audry suddenly asked drily.

Fleur suddenly laugh quite loudly "Oh no dear Audry, if you could feel what I feel form zese two you would know zis is much more than zat. They radiate love and affection towards each ozer." Fleur's words made both Harry and Hermione blush.

"Are you seeking a divorce then Hermione?" Audry said quietly over the table, Hermione nodded. "But you're stuck because Ron is a pureblood right?" Hermione nodded again.

"I am surprised he wouldn't divorce immediately after finding out you're sleeping with 'Arry." Fleur said quizzically.

"Well, I think Ron believes that after I'm done "Paying back Harry" that I'll come crawling back to him, however he is mistaken. To be honest once Harry gave me this…" Hermione placed a hand to the collar around her neck "…I've not taken it off with the exception to shower. I was hoping the entire Weasley family would recognise it but all I've heard is some of the men compliment Ron on picking out a nice necklace…"

This had both Audry and Fleur laughing. "Oh 'Ermione, I love my usband but e knows nozing of pureblood culture. You're going to need to be a little more obvious if you're wanting to push Ron to divorce you."

Audry suddenly chimed in "I guarantee that Percy will have recognised what it is, but he still believes he is on thin ice from his actions before and during the Second Blood War. I promise you it's going to be the first question on his lips when we get home and the girls are down."

Hermione sighed "I'm just at a loss, we've been rather…open…about our relationship around Ron and even wearing the collar out with Ron and even out with Harry. So he must know that his character across Wizarding Britian is being constantly damaged… There was even an article in Witch Weekly that speculated on whether Harry and I were just thick and it was a gift celebrating the re-establishment of our friendship or if it truly meant what it represented. I think the only reason the Prophet hasn't is because they're still recovering from the rubbish they printed when we were back in Hogwarts."

"Well, maybe eff you are pushing as hard as you say and Ron is not reacting, maybe he has a special place you don't go Ermione, a…ow you say… safe space?" Fleur suggested.

"He has always had his pub I guess… I've never gone there as I didn't want to encroach but now that's exactly what I need…"

***Flashback ends***

"Yeah, I still can't believe we sat at the table while two of Ron's sister's in law gave you advice on how to get him to divorce you… and it worked!" Harry said.

Hermione laughed to herself again but then shook her head. "Come on, you know Daphne is going to be here soon and I'd like to at least make a dent into this bedroom before she gets here!"
They both spent the next 25 minutes clearing away a combination of rubbish, dust bunnies and dangerous magical artefacts. Although Kreacher had eventually come around once Harry had destroyed the locket, he was still a terrible house elf and had done very little in maintaining the house while Harry had been living in Hogsmeade. So when he'd first moved back into Grimmauld Place the house had been barely liveable, now however after months of occupation and effort it was beginning to look more and more like the respectable house one would expect of a Lord Black.

Once they were done with the bedroom, Hermione gave Harry a chaste kiss and rushed up to their room to shower, while Harry wandered into the kitchen to prepare tea. In the last month or so that Daphne had been working on the Weasley divorce settlement, they had begun getting to know each other in a more personal way and this was reflected in the drinks Harry prepared for Daphne's arrival, while Harry and Hermione were happy to drink some Butter Beers after their day spent cleaning, Harry also prepared a teapot with some First Flush Darjeeling ready to be steeped when Daphne arrived. Daphne preferred not to consume alcohol and while Hermione had always enjoyed tea herself, once she learnt that the monthly tea parties she had with Ginny and Molly was the way in which her potions were administered, Hermione had developed some what of an aversion to the drink.

As Harry finished laying out the afternoon tea, he heard Daphne's voice call through from the living room.

"Harry? Hermione? Are you there?" Daphne called out excitedly.

Harry walked into the living room and stuck his head in the floo "Come through Daphne, I've just finished getting afternoon tea ready." Once he finished speaking, he backed away from the floo.

After a brief moment, Daphne stepped out of the floo and Harry noticed she wore a dark form fitting robe, which caused Harry's breath to catch in his throat.

"I haven't stunned the great Man-Who-Won have I?" Daphne asked with a smirk, making it clear she'd worn this on purpose.

"I..Uh…No..Yes?" Harry stuttered out as his brain attempted a soft reboot. During their regular catch ups about the case Daphne tended towards more conservative attire, appropriate for a lawyer visiting a client. Today however something had very obviously changed.

Daphne stepped close to Harry and rested her right hand gently on his left cheek. "Shall we go through to the dinning area for tea Harry, I do have some wonderful news~" Daphne purred out, obviously enjoying the effect she was having on him.

"Ye…Yeah... Let's um… sit down. H-Hermione is just having a quick shower." Harry responded, not moving as his brain's reboot hadn't made it that far yet.

"Oh, does that mean I have you to myself for a short time then?" Daphne asked with a smirk, Harry responded by nodding dumbly. Daphne's hand dropped slowly and gently from his cheek to his chest and continued lowering while she spoke.

"Well that's good, because I've received the final, signed, offer from Mr. Weasley and it has everything you asked for." She whispered softly into Harry's ear making him shiver "And since I've been a very good girl, I thought you might give me a reward."

Harry, his brain finally finishing it's reboot looked directly into Daphne's startling blue eyes "That's great Daphne, ahh, what kind of rew-" Harry sudden froze as he felt Daphne's hand pass under the waist band of his pants and underwear.

"I have a very specific reward in mind my Lord. Since we agreed to begin courting once I won the case, I'd like us to kick start our relationship." As she finished her sentence, she grasped his member tightly and gasped looking at Harry's crotch "Oh my, my Lord certainly is well endowed. What a lucky little witch I am, hopefully I've been good enough for my Lord to make use of it.."

When Daphne finally looked up from the weapon she'd found into the eyes of the man she'd hope would spare her from an arranged marriage, she realised she'd possibly pushed a little too hard. Harry's eyes, usually a wonderful light shade of emerald, were suddenly a very dark green which betrayed the level of lust she'd invoked in him.

Harry, like a switch had suddenly been flicked, looked down at the witch who had stoked the fire within him and decided that he didn't like the power imbalance that had developed since Daphne had arrived and chose to mix things up.

"Well, 'Lucky Little Witch', since you've been such a good girl, why don't we see how quickly I can give you your reward" and with that finished banished their clothes and gently threw Daphne over to one of the larger couches. A part of Harry's mind half expected Daphne to protest in some way as he realised he'd potentially accelerated the situation faster than Daphne wanted, however that part of him was quickly shut down when Daphne, who had landed face down arse up on the couch, suddenly turned her head to face him and said in a sultry tone. "Oh My Lord, I don't think we have enough time for you to give me the reward I truly want…though with that basilisk of a cock, maybe you can." She than reached back and spread lower lips with one hand, while the other curled a finger from between her legs inviting him forward.

Harry, without even thinking dove forward, although if Daphne expected him to claim her then and there she was mistaken. Her hairless flower looked delicious to Harry and he had quickly decided that he would have a taste before diving into dessert. As Harry's tongue gently caressed Daphne's flower, the lady in question let out a wanton moan.

"Sweet Morgana, your tongue feels amazing, please don't stop!"

Harry taking this as gospel, continued to lap at Daphne's flower paying special attention to the little bundle of nerves he knew would enable him to push her over the edge. Harry, who was kneeling on the ground in front of the couch, began running his hands gently and slowly up Daphne's thighs. Although Daphne had at this time pushed her face into the cushions to try and muffle her moans, Harry could tell this was having the effect he wanted. Harry suddenly grasped Daphne's legs and flipped her, so she was face up now and continued to explore her flower with tongue, while his hands returned to their slow caressing of her inner thighs.

While Daphne was distracted by Harry's (what she now considered sinful) tongue, she didn't realise that Harry's hands had slowly been progressing higher and higher towards her core. That was until she felt two fingers gently enter her, causing her to gasp, and then twist and curl, gently prodding her G-spot. The moment that touch was made, Daphne lost all sense of control as she was pushed over the edge and proceeded to squirt all over Harry's face. Daphne bucked and squealed in pleasure, while Harry just continued to lap at her and drink up Daphne's sweet juices.

Once Daphne's orgasm finished, Harry stood and looked down at the beautiful mess that was Daphne Greengrass, jokingly saying "And here I thought you were the one getting a reward Daphne, it appears I'm the only one that has been given something." Daphne who was still lost in a world of bliss simply looked up at this wonderful man and whimpered.

"Let me return the favour." Harry said to his lawyer, lining his basilisk of a cock up with her entrance and pushed in hard and fast. Since Daphne was barely coherent, she wasn't prepared for the assault on her core, she screamed out in pleasure and went to lean forward but was pushed back down against the couch.

"Ah ah ah my Little Witch, this is your reward, so you will lie back and take it." Harry's hand went from her shoulder to her neck making Daphne acutely aware that resistance wasn't an option. Harry was by no means choking her, but it was very clearly a message of who was in control.

Then, with one hand against the couch and the other gently around Daphne's neck, Harry began pushing in and out of her. Given the attention Daphne had received before this began, Harry was able to quickly get up to speed and therefore Daphne quickly found herself on the receiving end of another monstrous orgasm. The moment Harry felt her silken walls begin to flutter around his cock, he picked Daphne up and held her against him, walking towards the nearest wall.

Daphne's pleasure addled brain was awoken by the feeling of the cold wall against her back. Harry had her pressed against it and their lips were mere centimetres away from each other. "Kiss me My Lord, kiss me!" Daphne said quickly, suddenly craving the feeling of the Harry's lips against hers. Had she been in a clearer state of mind, she might have realised how backwards things were and how quickly they had barrelled out of control however at that moment in time the only thing going through her mind was to get to feel more of the bliss that he was gifting her.

Harry and Daphne were completely lost in their own little bubble of debauchery, as Harry hammered into Daphne from below driving her upwards and gravity made sure Daphne bounced back down delivering a large amount pleasure to both of them. Daphne could feel Harry's breath quicken against her ear and feel his thrusts become more irregular and erratic. Realising he was close and that she didn't feel like going against the advice she had given Hermione only a month prior, she summpmed the willpower to say into his shoulder. "Not inside, NOT INSIDE."

Harry, hearing these words pulled out and lowered Daphne to the ground with a squeak, her legs in no condition to hold her up. Daphne's hands shot up and began pumping, doing her best to match the speed a which he had been thrusting. After fifteen seconds of intense attention from Daphne, Harry suddenly groaned with pleasure, thrust his hips forward and proceeded to almost drown Daphne.
As the first spurt hit Daphne in the cheek, she brought her mouth to the tip, still pumping away. Unfortunately for Daphne, she wasn't expecting the volume and velocity of Harry's ejaculation, as her mouth quickly filled she coughed and semen shot out of her nose. She leaned back and at this point, continuing to chase the end of his orgasm, Harry took over stroking his cock which continued to almost hose Daphne down with semen.

As the last shot fell on Daphne's breasts, she looked up into Harry's eyes with a smile on her face and a witty retort on her lips, however she was beaten to the punch.

"I assume given the smell of the living room, the condition of Miss Greengrass and the lack of clothing that she was bearing good news this afternoon?" Hermione said from the doorway of the living room.