QL - Round 10 - Shared Connections - Pride of Portree - Beater 2.

Chosen joint romantic pairing - Harry Potter/Hermione Granger

Optional Prompts - [Dialogue] "I thought I was special."; [Object] Photo Album

THC - Ravenclaw - Potions - Standard. Chosen Ravenclaw character: Terry Boot

Prompt - [Song] Good in Goodbye, Carrie Underwood - "I'm so glad I didn't get what I thought that I deserved."

Note: AU. Ignores epilogue.

Word Count: 2427

Beta(s): Bea, secretfanficlover, CupCakeyyy, Aurora, S. Lowelle.

Life could be determined by a series of memories. Those memories could be captured in a photograph. The phrase 'a picture says a thousand words' had never made sense to Hermione Granger until right now as she flicked through photo albums with Ginny.

The two of them were together for a celebration; Ginny was getting married next week to Terry Boot of all people. Nobody saw that coming. In fact, it was a surprise for most people that Harry and Ginny didn't end up together.

"Oh! Look at Ron there!" Ginny exclaimed, immediately regaining Hermione's attention.

The bushy-haired girl laughed instantly. "The Yule Ball! You went with Neville, and I went with Krum! It was a great night, but those boys were so grumpy!"

"Maybe because they both wanted to ask you out."

Hermione let out another, quieter, laugh. "Doubtful. That was a tricky year."

Ginny nodded. "I'm telling you the truth. Why do you think they both got last minute dates? Because they were both too chicken to ask you."

"Actually," Hermione began, "Ron did ask me." Ginny gasped. "It was the worst way to ask anybody. He started with 'you're a girl, right?'."

That instantly set the two off into giggles. "Did he think it would work?"

All Hermione could do was shrug.

"What are you two laughing at?" Harry questioned as he brought Hermione over a plate of food.

"Nothing," came the giggled reply from Ginny.

Hermione too let out an uncontrollable onslaught of laughter. "Nothing, honestly, Harry."

He nodded suspiciously before smiling. "Okay, do you need anything else?"

She shook her head. Harry leant down and dropped a kiss to her lips before walking off.

"I thought I was special," Ginny suddenly said. "When I was younger and Harry and I dated for a few weeks. I honestly thought I was the most special girl in the world. That I had found my happily ever after."

Hermione was taken back by this new line of conversation. She presumed that Ginny was happy with her fiancé Terry, but those words didn't make sense. "You are special."

Ginny nodded. "Maybe, but not to Harry. And I didn't realise until now how thankful I am for that. I had this huge crush on him, but at the time, I didn't really know him." She paused thoughtfully. "He's a great guy, the best, but… you are right for him."

"Where is this coming from?"

Ginny flicked through the album to find a photo taken last year. "You look so happy. You have that amazing little boy." Her sights turned over to Harry and Ron who were keeping said little boy entertained. "When you and Harry started dating, I didn't think it would work. I was still in the mindset that Harry would be mine, that I deserved him, but looking at how happy he is, and how you're glowing right now... I can't even understand why I ever thought that it wouldn't work between you two. I'm glad that I didn't get what I thought I deserved - both of us would have been miserable."

Hermione nodded. "I get that. I hadn't even thought about Harry as anything more than a friend, to begin with. But when Ron left us alone when searching for Horcruxes… Harry and I just had this dancing moment."

"I haven't heard this before."

Hermione, once again, nodded, a soft smile tugging at her lips. This moment had taken place during the war, and seemed so insignificant. Prior to the moment, Hermione had been crying over Ron leaving, and Harry had been checking on Ginny at Hogwarts every other night. Neither of them saw each other as anything more than just a friend. However, one sloppy dance and all Hermione knew was that Harry was here and she could count on him. She didn't forget about Ron overnight and wasn't in love with Harry. However, that was definitely the door that opened the possibility of it. One that at the time couldn't be spoken. "It wasn't anything big. Just two lonely souls dancing to some music and enjoying one another's company."

Her friend understood. "When did you know that you loved Harry?"

A laugh escaped her. "A year after? I wasn't even sure of my feelings when we started going out. It all felt natural, but… it wasn't until after he had confessed his feelings for me that I realised I felt the same way about him." She paused to look over at Harry setting their son James onto a broom with him. "And the rest is history."

The two sat in silence for a moment, just watching the madness around them. Molly Weasley bustling around to prepare more food. Harry, Terry, and most of the Weasleys were flying around the garden, half of them with toddlers on their brooms with them. Ron and Cho exchanging loving looks as they helped clear up, hoping that nobody realised they were dating - which was obvious to most people.

"How about you? When did you know?"

Ginny's glance went out to the garden, where Terry was currently hovering, and smiled. "Almost instantly. I had never spoken to him before my final year at Hogwarts when he returned to repeat his. We were in some of the same classes and he was just so funny. We ended up doing homework together and things just clicked. We graduated and then a month later I turned up at his house and asked him out. I knew then that I couldn't live without him." Her smile glowed. "It may have taken us longer to get to the marriage part of the relationship, but it works perfectly for us."

"That's great." Hermione grinned. She didn't admit that she hadn't noticed Ginny spending time with the Ravenclaw during her eighth year. "Soon, you'll be Mrs Ginny Boot."

Hermione kept replaying Ginny's words in her head. Her friend had been very genuine and open about what had been going on in her mind as they reflected over the past. There was more than one way to be special, so many events that changed their course of action, but one thing she never thought about was what she didn't get.

"Harry," she spoke, breaking the calm and relaxed silence as the two of them were just about to go to sleep. "What are you thankful for that you didn't get?"

He looked at her, his confusion clearly laid out on his expression. "What?"

"Ginny said that she was grateful that you and her didn't end up together, because of how happy you both are," she explained. "I've never thought about things that way."

"Oh," was all he said for a few minutes. "I don't think about what I'm glad I don't have, just about what I'm glad I do have. That's you, James, and this little one." His hand rested on her slightly bloated stomach.

A smile took over Hermione's thoughtful expression. "You are so special to me."

His soft expression somehow managed to soften even more before he leant over and dropped a sweet kiss on her lips. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

"We should sleep; James won't let us sleep in."

Hermione laughed. That much was completely true. "He might surprise us."

She slid down onto the bed properly and snuggled up to him. Listening to his steady heartbeat, feeling his breath push his chest up and down, and knowing that they were both happy. This only lasted about three minutes before she rolled over - he was just too hot! But they didn't need to hold each other for the whole night to be content in their life.

The sun shone down and reflected off the crisp blue lake nearby as Harry and Hermione took a small stroll. Bill, Charlie, and Fleur had taken all of the children for a last-minute run around before they would all get cleaned up and have to sit still for the ceremony. Hermione honestly wasn't sure how long James would be able to stay quiet for: he was only two, after all. Regardless, today brought all of her previous romantic feelings to the surface; weddings usually did.

"Do you think Terry will be good for Ginny?"

Harry didn't falter in his calm expression, he was used to her random questions. "They are very happy together."

"You've become more diplomatic."

"Says the future Minister of Magic," he retorted playfully.

Hermione didn't correct him on the correct feminine word for a minister. "Just because I received a promotion doesn't mean my name is even going to be considered, Harry. I'm happy where I am."

Harry took her hand in his. "Either way, I'm proud of you."

She felt her cheek shine bright like the hot sun beating down on them. "Let's head back in, it's almost time for the ceremony and we need to make sure James hasn't removed all of his clothes… again."

The two of them took their time to walk through the small cluster of trees, it could barely be classed as woods, and to the outside area set up for the wedding. It was honestly beautiful and fit both Terry and Ginny's personalities.

The accents of blue matched her eyes and his former house, and the open-air represented their freedom.

They began to look for their son together when they bumped into the man of the hour; unfortunately, he didn't look as peaceful as the surroundings. "Are you-" Harry had started but Terry interrupted.

"Ginny's going to kill me," he announced, his voice growing in panic with every word he said.

Harry took his arm and led him inside, with Hermione following, her worry increasing. Was he having cold feet? He wasn't the type of person to give up as far as she was aware. But perhaps there was something they didn't know. What could that be? Was Terry questioning his feelings? Why would Ginny hate him?

"Take a deep breath," Harry instructed. "What's going on?"

Terry took the deep breath instruction seriously and took several before looking between them. "I lost my tie," he started before moving his robe to the side. "And I dropped tomato sauce down my shirt when eating pizza!"

Hermione found this rather funny, but not because she thought he was overreacting, but because it reminded her of her own wedding day. Without informing him, she cast a cleaning charm on his shirt. "Now, that's done. Have you tried summoning your tie?"

Terry looked at her dumbfounded for a long few seconds before laughing. "No, I haven't," he admitted, running a hand through his brown hair - and by the state of it, he'd done that a lot lately. "Accio tie."

The instantly calming look on the soon-to-be-husband's face was reassuring. When things were stressful, it could heighten all fears and insecurities; in this case, it wasn't being ready for the actual wedding.

Harry patted him on the shoulder. "For the record, Ginny couldn't hate you."

Terry laughed, the care-free man almost back to his normal self. "You know how much she loves her photo albums, I'm sure a missing tie and stained shirt wouldn't be her perfect wedding." A thoughtful look covered his face. "I want today to be special for her, she deserves it."

"It will be," Hermione told him. "Because it's who you marry that matters."

He nodded thankfully. "You're right. I'm still going to do my best for her."

"I wouldn't expect anything less, you're a great guy!"

After that, Hermione and Harry left him to his own devices as they resumed their hunt for their son - well, the two oldest Weasley brothers to be more specific.

Harry looked at her for a few seconds, which caught her attention, before speaking. "I've been thinking," he started. That was ominous. "About what you said the other night."

"Oh yeah?"

He took a breath and Hermione wasn't sure she wanted him to carry on. "I have been through so much before and during the war, you know this. And the only family I really had was the Weasleys… but they weren't really my family. I got to a point that I thought that I needed to be a Weasley to really fit in and know who I was. It wasn't why Ginny and I dated, not at all, she is a great girl. But there was definitely that aspect that I should be allowed to marry in and have this. Ginny. She is something I am so glad I didn't get. I don't deserve her because she deserves somebody who loves her as much as she loves him, and that's Terry. The way they look at each other, how her blue eyes shine."

Harry took her hands in his. "And if I had got what I thought I deserved or needed, I wouldn't have been able to step back and find my path to you."

Hermione smiled. Part of her wished that Harry was able to officially be part of the Weasley family, he deserved that happy ending, but at the same time, she was glad that his path went a different way. "You are part of the Weasleys, regardless of what anybody else says."

He smiled at her. Suddenly, his eyes darted away. "I've got James, you go to Ginny; you are a bridesmaid, after all."

Hermione laughed as Harry darted off after the group of children. It was cute seeing him being the responsible one, he usually helped the young ones into mischief. Happily, she headed towards where she would find the bride-to-be.

With her shoulders held back, her hands neatly folded around the flowers, and her head held high, Hermione walked down the aisle after Victoire, the flower girl. Terry was staring past her, waiting patiently, and she could tell the second he laid eyes on Ginny as his whole face lit up like a Christmas tree.

She watched as his lips slowly twitched further and further into a broad smile with every step Ginny took on her way down the aisle, their eyes connected the whole way. Hermione knew too well that in this moment, nothing else mattered to the nearly married couple; not what tie he was wearing, or how many guests arrived, or even if anything had gone right. All that mattered to the two of them was that they were here together.

Hermione felt herself smiling through the entire ceremony as she had flashbacks to her own wedding. If Terry and Ginny were anything like them, then this would be just one happy day in a series of great days.