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A New Way to Live | ||||||
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Category: Post-HBP, Post-Hogwarts Characters:Draco Malfoy, Harry/Ginny, Hermione Granger, Nymphadora Tonks, Other, Remus Lupin, Ron Weasley Genres: Action/Adventure, Comedy, Fluff, Romance Warnings: Sexual Situations Rating: R Reviews: 240 Summary: *** The author has been reminded via the e-mail address on file that this story is listed as incomplete and has not been updated in over 2 years *** SHOCKER OF SHOCKERS! PESKY UPDATES! Sequel to "Harry Potter and the Legend of Infinity." Please read and review ;) before reading this one! Harry and Ron are becoming Aurors, and a new threat is rising. Will Draco return a changed man? How will Harry learn the new ways to love? Hitcount: Story Total: 66785; Chapter Total: 3733 Author's Notes: Please Review! |
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Chapter Sixteen Repetitive History Molly danced joyfully to the Christmas carols coming over the Wizarding Wireless. Nadia and Samuel bounced playfully around her while Maggie and Thadeus spun about. Molly hopped lightly around the kitchen with Tatiana in her arms. Roni laughed at her energetic mother-in-law and prayed for that much energy when she met Molly’s age. Mason, Maxim, and Mallory giggled wildly as their fathers danced with them, tossed them in the air, and tickled their bellies. Ron laughed at his mother when she pouted as Viktor stole his daughter away only to dance with her himself. Coming to her rescue, Ron collected his mother into his arms and twirled her around to the jazzy beat. “Pretty smooth, baby brother, trying to get on Mum’s good side?” Bill teased. “Always,” Ron answered cheekily, dipping his Mum playfully. “Where’s Hermione?” Fred inquired as he tossed Mason into the air again. Ron smiled when he pulled Molly up and she swatted his arm. “She had a final fitting for her robes. I think she and Ginny had a few last minute wedding details to handle.” The men nodded in understanding and grinned. “You do realize,” George offered. “That this means we need to have your stag night?” Fred finished. “Anything you want to do to me, you must clear through Hermione,” Ron said with a bright smile. “If she gives her stamp of approval, I’ll go along willingly with whatever you say.” Hermione and Ginny bustled into the kitchen, laden with large packages, their robes nicely concealed in an opaque covering. “What’s this? Ron’s stag night?” Ginny asked. Hermione’s eyes twinkled merrily as the twins paled slightly. “What exactly do you think will be happening at this ‘stag night’?” “George and I were hoping to take our baby brother out…all in good fun, Hermione,” Fred explained quickly. “Of course! All in good fun, Hermione,” George supplied as he glared at Bill and Charlie for help. “You see, Hermione, it’s a rite of passage. Men are taken out for one last night of debauchery and mayhem to celebrate their youth and the transition to adulthood,” Bill offered smiling when he saw the women lining up across from the men. Tonks ushered the kids out of the room while Viktor handed Tatiana off to Natasha. With the children ensconced in the next room, the battle lines were drawn and Hermione stared down Ron’s brothers, with a devilish smile. “Tell me, Ron,” Hermione began with a soft smile at her fiancé, “Do you want to have a stag night?” “I would love to have a night with my brothers and friends, Hermione,” Ron said with a wink to her, “but I don’t want anything to happen that you would be uncomfortable with…” Hermione and Ginny grinned at each other as he trailed off. The twins snickered behind him. Someone made a crack about Ron being under Hermione’s thumb and pandemonium struck. The women shrieked at their husbands and the men shuddered collectively. Hermione, throughout, remained surprisingly quiet and held up a petite hand to the crowd. The ladies stood behind her with particularly malevolent gleam in their collective stances. Husbands suddenly worried and each was privately thinking the stag night wasn’t such a good night after all. “Fred,” Hermione addressed, smirking when the man shuddered. “Will you lot be drinking at this party?” Fred smiled. “Yes, probably in excess but we won’t let him poison himself.” “Charlie,” she turned to the dragon keeper, “Will there be pranks and practical jokes pulled at Ron’s expense.” Charlie shifted nervously on his feet. “Probably, but it won’t get too unruly. Can’t have a groom with purple hair, now can we?” Hermione smiled at this and moved on. “George, will there be ladies of questionable morality at this party?” “Well…ah…you see Hermione,” George stuttered, looking to his brothers for help. “Yes,” he said with a quiet voice. Finally, Percy butted in, “Hermione, if you are uncomfortable with us taking him to such a place, we won’t. We’ll take him to a tavern, get him liquored up, and send him home.” His brothers scowled at him, but Hermione smiled. “So this stag party…Its nothing more than you boys, going out, getting drunk, and coming home, then?” One by one, they all nodded glumly, while Ron smirked devilishly. He saw that look in her eye and knew what was coming. “Alright, boys, you have your little party, but I must say, that doesn’t sound like half the fun Fleur and Ginny have planned for me!” Hermione squealed. Several men gasped as the women laughed at them. Greg shook his head at his daughter, wondering if she was channelling her all too playful mother. Molly giggled as she looked at her sons. Ginny and Hermione left to put their packages away but returned shortly to find the room still live with laughter. The men desperately trying to find out their plans. “Don’t worry, boys, I won’t let any of them do any body shots off the dancers. I’ll keep that joy to myself,” the women dissolved into peels of laughter as the men guffawed. Knowing they had been had, the husbands shook their heads at their wives. Fleur winked at Bill when he scooped her into his arms. “And just what have you planned, my little wife?” “I’ll never tell!” she squeaked as he tossed her over his shoulder. “Put me down!” “Mum, would you keep an eye on Maxim? My wife and I need to have a brief…chat,” Bill asked with a playful grin to his mother. Fleur fought against him to no avail and wailed in protest as he ran out of the room, never letting her out of his grasp. The family chuckled at the young couple. Charlie had followed his brother’s lead and pulled Reggie into a fond embrace. Without bothering to leave the room, Charlie pushed her against a wall, where they were snogging heatedly. Molly rolled her eyes at her son and tossed some cold water at them from her wand. Charlie sputtered indignantly, but immediately started laughing. Reggie blushed but laughed at her husband, who was soaked. She had only been splashed a little in the face. “Come on, love,” Charlie whispered to her, “Let’s get me out of these wet clothes.” Ignoring the snickers, the pair quietly, but quickly, hurried out of the kitchen and up to their bedroom. While Charlie and Reggie were preoccupied, Remus sat at the table and gestured for Harry to join him. “When your dad married your mum, they had an equally amusing battle about stag and hen parties. James was all too worried about Petunia and Alice had planned for your mother. Petunia, well back then at least, was quite the little hellion, let me tell you,” Remus added with a wink to Harry’s aunt who took a seat across from them. “It wasn’t me! Alice was a bad influence,” Petunia protested as Dudley and Hagar took a seat next to her. “Alice?” Neville asked quietly, “My mum?” Petunia nodded. “Alice was a little, erm, feisty.” Remus snorted into his drink. “Alice was a bloody flirt and poor Frank had his hands full.” The people in the room quickly fell into the chairs, wanting to hear Remus’s stories. “I remember, we were at graduation, Sirius was trying to convince Lily to marry him.” “Again,” Petunia muttered under her breath, and Remus glared at her. She smirked at him. “Please, continue.” “As I was saying,” Remus said with a smile, “James and Lily were fighting with Sirius while Peter and I had gone over to visit a few friends, wish congratulations, and whatnot. I spotted Frank; he was standing with his mother. Augusta Longbottom was a formidable woman who only wanted the best for her son. Mind you, Frank was not pampered, but she tended to worry over him a bit much.” Neville smiled fondly as he thought of his late grandmother. “Well, not an hour after the graduation ceremony, Augusta was asking Frank about a wife. She wanted him married and settled with her first grandchild no less than a year out of Hogwarts. Peter and I were laughing at him. He was caught. He didn’t even have a girlfriend and there was nothing he could do about it. “You see, while he had been at Hogwarts, he would write home telling Augusta that there was a steady girl in his life, but in actuality they were few and far between. In reality, he was hopelessly in love with the single life. He didn’t have the heart to disappoint his mother and let her think he had a girlfriend for over a year. “The whole time he was squirming, Alice Fairweather was listening. She was a year below us and had come to the graduation for her sister, Mary. After excusing herself from her family, Ally came running over to me. ‘Remus, you found him!’ She exclaimed. We were shocked. Ally threw her hands on her hips and started scolding poor Frank. ‘I told you to meet me by the fountain! You didn’t think I’d let you leave without at least a kiss!’ “Frank and Augusta watched on with absolute shock. Finally, Ally leaned in and put the softest of kisses on Frank and Augusta cackled gleefully. ‘Well, Frankie, this must be the young lady you mentioned.’ Ally, not to be out done, ‘Madam Longbottom, it’s and honour to finally meet you. Frank tells me about his wonderful mother so often I feel I already know you.” “Alice was charming to be sure,” Petunia added. “Anyhow, Augusta immediately started grilling Alice and Frank about their plans. Ally came to Frank’s rescue and smiled at his mother. ‘Well, we’d like to see where it goes, but since I still have another year at Hogwarts, we are taking it quite slowly. I’m sure you understand. Frank has Auror training, and I’ll have it after I graduate, so we’ll just enjoy our time together.’ Frank just stood there nodding emphatically. Augusta bought the whole pile while Peter and I did everything we could to not laugh. “Finally, Augusta moved over to chat with Dumbledore for a few minutes. Ally just winked at Frank, planted a wet kiss on his mouth and told him that he owed her a dinner for that performance. Then, she moved back over to say goodbye to her sister. Frank was smitten before she got out of arm’s reach.” Neville was laughing with a suspicious tear in his eye and the family smiled at the memories. “So when we heard that Ally and Petunia had planned not a hen party, but a hen weekend for Lily, we were understandably concerned,” Remus concluded. “There is this lovely little town in America. If you ever get a chance to visit Las Vegas, bet red,” Petunia added cheekily. The twins howled with laughter while Dudley shook his head at his mother’s confession. Hagar smiled knowingly and laughed. She looked around the table. People had filtered into the room and were captured by Lupin’s story. Bill and Fleur had reappeared, though looking incredibly dishevelled. Charlie and Reggie had returned as well, but he was wearing a different shirt. Viktor was making Nadia a sandwich at the counter while Natasha fed Tatiana a bottle. Morgana and Seamus were sitting at the end of the table, with her in his lap. Malachi was standing by the ice box with Mallory on his shoulders and arm around Hannah. Maggie had run in from the other room and perched herself on Ron’s knee, then helped Amina onto his lap as well. Ron smiled indulgently at his daughter and goddaughter. Deus stood next to Harry, leaning into his godfather while and pulling Samuel to stand with him, but Samuel moved to sit with his mother. Molly plopped onto the floor and played with her grandsons. Mason was chasing after Maxim on wobbly legs while Matthias crawled after them. Ginny dropped onto the floor beside Maxim and smiled at her mother when Matthias scooted into her lap. Percy was watching them from the table with bright eyes and Penny looked on with a sad smile. The room welcomed Susan and Draco into the room. Susan was clutching little Luci and smiled at her friends. Harry stood to let Susan and the baby have his chair. Draco smirked at the chivalrous behaviour and guided Susan to sit. The family fell into happy discussions. Percy was chatting away with Ron about finalizing Maggie’s adoption, while Hermione kept trying to steal Amina off his lap. The stubborn girl was perfectly happy to stay rooted in Ron’s grasp and giggled when Hermione huffed. They sat there, enjoying the happy moment and Harry observed the family he always wanted. “Hello! Anybody home!” a voice called out from the hall. “Ginny, I think one of your Christmas presents just got here,” Harry announced with a playful grin. Ginny shot him a questioning look and ran to see who had arrived. A resounding shriek of pure joy bounced about the house and Harry laughed with the family. A moment later, Ginny returned though she was resting piggy back on Colin. The boy dropped Ginny’s legs and he rushed to Harry and Ron. Welcoming slaps on the back and handshakes abounded as he was welcomed into the clan. The family smiled when Molly bustled about the newcomer and hurried to make him a plate of dinner. “Thanks, but I ate on the plane,” Colin smiled graciously. “Harry flew me out. He claims Miss Ginny here has missed me. I’ve been living in Muggle San Francisco for the past few months and there wasn’t any other way for me to get home. Let me tell you, those Muggle aeroplanes are bloody terrifying. ” He eyed Ginny warily but smiled when she punched his arm. “I never said such a thing. What bullocks.” Harry shook his head and laughed, but when Ginny plopped into his lap, kissing his cheek. He shifted and pulled her close to him, he smiled when she wrapped her strong arms about his neck in silent thanks. “Oh, are we giving people for Christmas this year?” Roni asked with a wink to Fred. “Seems we must be, that’s lucky,” Fred supplied. “But who should we give a person to?” Roni asked rhetorically to her husband. The family grew excitedly quiet as they waited for the ball to drop. With devilish eyes, Fred scanned his family before landing his stare. “I do believe that since Hermione’s the reason we have said person, she should be the recipient. Don’t you, my love?” Fred winked back to Roni. “Absolutely, dear! Hermione, how would you feel about getting a godson? Granted, there will be a bit of a wait yet, but what do you say?” Roni grinned when she saw tears forming in Hermione’s eyes. The family burst into loud cries of joy and congratulations. Molly was beside herself with glee. “Well, what are you going to name him?” “How’d you know it was a boy?” Fred asked with surprise. “You’re a Weasley, what else would it be?” Molly responded with a smirk. “Midas John Weasley,” Fred retorted smartly. “Another ‘M’ name…I will get so confused, Mason, Maxim, Matthias, Maggie, now Midas? You boys and your ‘M’ names,” Molly shook her head with a laugh. “Well don’t worry Mum, we’ll name our next one Graham,” Bill offered. “And when will that be?” Molly asked hopefully. “When nature gets around to it,” Bill said, laughing when his mother pouted. “Oh, Molly, don’t fret, the way those two go at it, you’ll have another grandson in no time,” Reggie offered with a wink. “You have little room to talk, my dear daughter-in-law,” Molly quipped. “Don’t I know it,” was Reggie’s only reply. By now, Charlie had pulled his wife into his lap after he had brought in a few extra chairs. Charlie laughed at the banter between his mother and wife. “Anything you want to tell me love?” he joked. Reggie smiled with a mysterious smile, and she heard the silence fall again. Charlie gasped behind her and he twisted her to gaze into her eyes. “Craven,” Charlie growled as his wife ignored him and reached for their son. “Matthias,” Reggie smiled at the beautiful baby in her arms. “We’re giving people for Christmas. Did you know that?” The baby cooed playfully and tugged his mummy’s necklace. “I decided I’m going to give your baby sister to Daddy, is that okay with you?” She asked quietly, smiling when her son called out ‘Da!’ Finally, looking into Charlie’s eyes, Reggie bit her lip to ignore the burning sensation in her own eyes. A few tears had escaped down Charlie’s masculine face and he hugged his family into him with strong arms. Molly gasped in surprise and cried gleefully hurrying to kiss Reggie and Charlie. “A baby girl,” Molly exclaimed quietly holding Reggie’s face tenderly in her hands. “How exciting! I’m actually going to have granddaughters! Maggie won’t be the only one!” More congratulations hurried about the room and several people wiped tears from their eyes. While the family was distracted, Penny quietly slipped out of the room, completely unnoticed by anyone besides her husband. Tonks sniffed heavily and pulled Amina away from Ron. She laughed when Amina playfully called out to her little friends. “Babies! Mummy lots of babies!” the little girl squealed. “I can’t wait for our baby!” Tonks breath caught and she frowned mournfully. “We aren’t going to have a baby, love.” “I get a sister, Mummy!” Amina ignored her mother entirely and pointed to Tonks’s belly. Tonks blushed and tried to quiet her daughter. “No, love, Mummy can’t have babies.” Amina burst into a sudden temper tantrum. She wailed and Tonks was shocked. Amina was a very docile child; she was shocked that the little girl was fussing so much about this. Amina kicked and cried; finally, Remus and Tonks carried the screaming girl to her bedroom. After an hour, the little girl hadn’t calmed down. Worried, now, Remus found Roni and asked her to help. When Amina spotted Roni, she quieted instantly and let the woman run her wand over her. Still sniffling, Amina pleaded with Roni to be heard. “Mummy’s going to have a baby,” the child whispered. “Sweet girl, you’re Mummy can’t have babies,” Roni tried to explain. “But you can play with my boys!” Amina shook her head. “Midas will pull my hair and Mason won’t let me play with him. I want to play with Fiona! Mummy said I could play with her after Marley takes her nap!” Again, the little girl started to cry, but it was calmer. Tonks looked totally shaken while Remus looked like he was trying to solve some big puzzle. Roni nodded, feeling rather stupid, but then a thought struck her. Mumbling she would be right back, she hurried out of the room. She returned with Draco, Hagar, Penny, Susan, and Hermione. “Amina is convinced Tonks is going to have a baby. While that is and of itself isn’t shocking, what is surprising that she believes that Midas and Mason won’t play with her. She’s even called this baby ‘Fiona.’ Now, while this could be a huge fantasy inside the little girl’s head, I’d rather believe it was could be something else. “Amina mentioned that a child named ‘Marley’ was taking a nap. If Midas had been a girl, that is what we would have named her. It seems a bit too much to be coincidence,” Roni finished and the other Healers nodded. Hagar held Amina tightly while the Healers twirled their wands over the little girl and a soft blue light pulsed off the child. Draco was openly shocked and Hermione laughed to herself. “What’s wrong with her?” Tonks asked worriedly. Roni shot a playful look at her old friend. “The little witch here needed a special diagnosis. At least four Healers are needed to cast the Power Assessment and Diagnostic spell. It isn’t like your regular diagnostic spell. This spell tells us what kind of magic your daughter already has. The blue light generally suggests empathic or foresight abilities, the pulses show that her magic is already active.” “What does that mean?” Remus asked with a quizzical brow. “It means, Remus,” Hermione offered, “That my goddaughter is a Seer, probably more powerful that Cassandra Trelawney herself.” Amina sniffed again and Hermione cuddled the little girl into her. With soft shushing noises, Hermione calmed the child and held her tightly. “But…but…if she’s a Seer that would mean…I’m…but I can’t be…you…the Healers said…I’m?” Tonks suddenly looked very faint. Remus guided his wife to sit down and watched her take several deep breaths. Roni smiled at her old friend and nodded as Draco, Susan, and Hagar slipped out of the room. Carefully and quietly, Roni whispered another spell and a soft amber light lifted off of Tonks’s abdomen. “Congratulations,” Penny whispered as she stepped out into the hall. Slowly, she trudged up to the room she shared with her husband. Her heart ached in her chest and she bravely fought down the tears quelling in her eyes. She and Percy had been trying for some time to get pregnant and it simply hadn’t happened yet. She knew that there was no reason they weren’t getting pregnant, but it hurt that she didn’t have a little baby to cuddle in the midst of all the family. Her quiet tears turned into sobs and soon she was spent. She curled exhaustedly around a pillow, and fell asleep. Meanwhile, Tonks and Remus were crying too. Remus was beyond thrilled. He loved his kids so much, and now, now he could watch Tonks bring a new life into his world. He kissed her tenderly and held her as she wept in pure joy. Roni and Hermione were with Amina in her room while they had hurried to their own bedroom to make through these latest discoveries. “Our little girl is a Seer, Remus; a real Seer!” Tonks gasped. “She’s going to have a hard time making sense of it.” “We’ll be there for her, Dora. She has us and the boys. Ron and Hermione would steal her if they could; she’ll be just fine,” Remus acquiesced. “Remus,” Tonks said quietly. “Remus, I’m pregnant.” Remus smiled and laid his wife down on the bed. He kicked his shoes off and drew down her body to pull of her trainers. A quivering hand came to rest just below her navel as he settled next to her. “We’re going to have a baby, Dora. She’ll have your eyes, maybe my smile, and we’ll love her as much as we love the others,” he told her softly. “But how? The Healers said I couldn’t have kids after I got injured in Diagon Alley!” Tonks exclaimed. Remus felt a quip about ‘when a man and a woman love each other’ coming on and forced it down. “I don’t know love, maybe when you got hurt at Susan’s Sol healed your old wounds as well?” Sensing he was needed, Sol abruptly entered the room in a ball of fire. He gazed down at his owners and trilled a few notes of an uplifting song. Tonks gazed at the bird and smiled. “When I meet Lily, I’m not going to know how to thank her,” Tonks said softly. Remus agreed quietly and kissed his wife again. The gentle kisses consumed her and they were lost to each other’s light touches and soft caresses. They made love tenderly and felt the passion for each other that would always be there. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ The next day, Percy pulled his brothers into a drawing room. The ladies were all still in the kitchen doting on their respective children while everybody else finished breakfast. “Guys, I need your help,” Percy said quickly. “It’s Penny, last night she cried herself to sleep again. I’m really getting worried about her.” “What’s wrong with her?” Charlie asked, recognizing that they wouldn’t have much time before the women came looking for them. “We’ve been trying to get pregnant for a while now,” Percy admitted with a blush, “But we haven’t been successful, yet. I think being around all these babies and pregnant women is a bit overwhelming for her.” Bill smiled sadly at his brother. “Have her talk to Mum. I’ll tell Fleur, she’ll be able to sympathize. We thought we were going to have another one, but it was a false alarm. Fleur took it really hard. She wants another one baby, badly.” The brothers nodded in agreement. “You still have a few several days on holiday, why don’t you take her someplace as a distraction?” George suggested. “We bought some property off the coast of Atlantis last year,” Fred added as he gestured to his twin. “George and I took the wives there for our honeymoons. It was amazing. The beaches are beautiful and the village is incredible.” “Yeah, mate, you could take her there as a surprise for Christmas! We’ll even Floo the house elf and have her get the place cleaned up,” George smiled as Percy’s face lit up. “How could you two afford such a place?” Percy asked completely surprised by the twins. George and Fred smirked and George answered him. “The shop took off the minute we opened the doors. Bill helped us invest wisely. Fred looked into properties for us for vacations and what not. The girls love the island, you should go!” “But only on the condition you don’t tell Hermione we have a house elf!” They chanted together and laughed when Ron snorted. “Go on, Percy, you should go right after Christmas so you can be back for the New Year’s party,” Ron agreed. With a final nod, Percy began to make plans with the twins while the other brothers moved out into the hall so they could keep the women away. As they waited for their brothers, Ron smiled at Charlie. “Already got another one on the way, eh big brother? You planning on keeping her pregnant?” “Every chance I get, little brother, every chance I get,” was Charlie’s playful reply. After several minutes, the Weasley men drifted into the kitchen and bounced their respective kids in their laps. Breakfast was a rather chaotic affair as the women hurried around to make sure all the children were fed and hurried them out to play in the snow. The men laughed and wandered into the sitting room. They descended into light chatter about the failure of English Quidditch, until Fleur called their attention to them. “Boyz,” she smiled at Bill who winked at her. “Tonight we are taking Hermione out. If you are planning on going out as well, you need to make plans to have someone watch out bebes.” The men nodded and tried to grill her about what she planned for the bride to be, but Fleur just laughed and shook her pretty head. As she glided out of the room, the men shifted their attention to Bill. “I tried, mates, I really tried. She won’t give me the tiniest of hints,” Bill said defensively as he spied the dirty looks. “Ginny hasn’t been very forthcoming either,” Harry offered. “Oh, let’s talk about Ginny!” Fred exclaimed as he pointed a deadly finger at Harry. George smiled at his twin and six brothers circled Harry. The Boy Who Lived managed to gulp and shake his head, instantly realizing he set himself up. “Exactly when did you move in with our baby sister?” Charlie accused with a light tone. “Erm,” Harry cleared his throat, “When she came home a day early from Auror training and I woke up with her in my bed.” Ron tried not to laugh at his best friend but failed miserably. “Ginny told me that Reggie even told her that I was home after a late shift!” Harry protested. “Oh, really?” Charlie hissed as he ran out of the room. A distant squeal was heard followed by several slaps and hexes being shouted. He returned to the sitting room, blatantly ignoring his smoking eyebrows, and started to stalk Harry once again. “Guys, please, think about what Ginny will do to you if I have to tell her you were threatening me, looking at me in a mean way, or simply frowned in my general direction…” Harry trailed off, smirking and crossing his arms across his chest. Percy shook his head. “We’re her brothers. We have to defend her honour.” Bill laughed out right. “Who is going to defend Harry’s honour? I’d bet all my galleons in Gringotts that Ginny gave Harry very little say in the matter.” “I remember falling asleep in front of the fire and then waking up with Ginny in my bed, wearing one of my shirts,” Harry confessed with a blush. In the corner, Greg and Remus were laughing at Harry, neither feeling inclined to help him. Eventually, the Weasley boys pulled away from Harry, each laughing at the intimidated young man. Neville and Draco were at the chessboard smirking at Harry, both privately glad they didn’t have to deal with Harry’s lot in life. Colin laughed merrily as he adjusted his camera around his neck. “I got some great shots, boys. Ginny will love to see how you, ahem, welcomed Harry into the family. I’ll make extra for those who want to see Charlie and his flaming eyebrows.” Together, the men chased after Colin, desperate to keep the pictures from ever finding Ginny’s hands. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ “Wh…Who…Who ’ddyou…Who’s-watchin’-da-kids, hic…” Hermione stuttered as gracefully as she could. Molly smiled indulgently into her glass of wine. “Greg and Mairead volunteered. Natasha is keeping an eye on Tatiana and Lucia too.” Hermione nodded heavily, her bushy curls falling into her face. Roni giggled girlishly at Ginny who was barely able to stand. With an arm around Roni and Tonks, Ginny was heaved up the stone steps and into Grimmauld Place. The women gasped as they saw the bodies of their men littering the floor. Greg was laughing hysterically as Remus tried manfully to climb up the stairs. The werewolf groaned on all fours as he made his way, inch-by-inch, up the steps to his bedroom. Tonks rushed to his side, leaving Ginny to sage on Roni. “Dora…so pretty,” Remus mumbled to his wife’s shoes. He clutched one tightly, causing Tonks to fall straight to her bum on the step beside him. Molly laughed at her boys and pushed Hermione onto the cushion next to Ron. Her youngest son pulled Hermione into his lap and the two began to mumble things to one another. Seeing Fred passed out on the rug, Molly moved to help Penny first. Percy, her uptight, ultra-conservative son, was wearing naught but a sheet. When Penny tried to coax him up the stairs he cried out. “Et tu, Brute!” Out of no where, an unholy yell escaped the man’s lips and he chased after his wife and mother. Percy grabbed an umbrella from the stand and tore after them, wielding the new weapon as a sword. “Go Percy, Go!” Ginny shouted into Roni’s ear. Tonks laughed at the scene and stunned the toga-clad man as he jumped over Fred. The snoozing twin groaned in his sleep as Percy fell on him with a soft ‘thud’, but otherwise, made no move to wake up. “Thank god you girls are pregnant…I don’t know what we would have done if you were all bashing around here like that Shakespearian Drunk!” Molly called as she pointed to her son, who now tried to cover himself in the rug Fred was sleeping on. No sooner were the words out of her mouth did Charlie burst into the room. Everyone stared at him, afraid to move a muscle. He had a fierce look in his eyes and he raised a deadly wand at no one in particular. The women would have had the sense to be afraid if he weren’t naked. Molly was the first to lose it. Her giggles were catching, soon Tonks, Roni, and Susan were laughing loudly at the nude dragon tamer. Ginny started laughing too but she seemed to have slumped to the floor, completely passed out. Reggie blushed brightly for her husband and covered her mouth so as not to laugh at him. “Let’s get you to bed, big man,” she hissed from behind her hand. Charlie seemed to look at her and recognition dawned on his face. “Mummy,” he whined. “How come I always end up naked!?” Molly didn’t even try to stop herself as she passed her cloak to her son. The lavender robe did nothing for him, but saved him some dignity. The ladies sighed as Penny and Reggie managed to help their husbands up the stairs and into bed. Tonks was still coaxing her husband up the steps as he crawled along very slowly. Verity chuckled darkly as she searched for George. “I’m almost afraid to find George,” she whispered to Fleur, though everyone heard her. “He wouldn’t hurt you, dear, would he?” Molly asked in concern. Verity smiled at her kind mother-in-law. “Hardly, he’s one of those rare incredibly randy, extremely romantic drunks. I fear that if I find him, he’ll have some wonderful escapade set up for us and I’ll get no sleep tonight.” “Such a hard life you have, Verity,” Tonks jibed from the stairwell. “I can put the fantasy away if you like, my love,” a dark voice hissed from a shadowy corner. “I wouldn’t want you to miss out on your beauty sleep.” Verity heard the teasing tone in his voice and called back. “You tell me I’m too beautiful daily, may as well make me work at it…” Molly laughed when Verity’s voice trailed off George enveloped her in a kiss. The two dashed up the steps moving only to step over Lupin and to allow Draco to make his way downwards. “Where have you been!?” Susan accosted him as she stepped away from the wall she had been leaning on. “I was checking on Luci, love,” Draco answered quietly as he took her into his arms. “Did you get drunk too?” she asked his shoulder unable to move away from his grasp. She was too dizzy. “No, my love, I couldn’t pass up the chance to get such good blackmail material on Potter and Weasley,” Draco smiled down at her. “Creevey has the most wonderful pictures.” Greg finally managed to help Tonks get Remus onto the landing and hurried back down the steps to help Molly. “How was your night, dear?” Molly asked as she covered Ron with a blanket. Greg pulled Hermione into his arms as Molly tried to settle her youngest son. The groom whimpered in his sleep and reached out to find Hermione. Molly waved her and over a pillow and transformed it into a large teddy bear. Ron smiled gleefully in his sleep and quieted. Molly and Greg looked at the bodies left to find their beds and shrugged. Morgana had simply cuddled up with Seamus on the dining room table. Hannah and Malachi were passed out on several cloaks in the closet while Harry and Neville were sound asleep in the bathroom. Molly had to stifle a giggle as she saw Neville snoring in the tub. Harry was apparently ill, and hand fallen asleep against the porcelain toilet. With another shrug, Molly levitated Harry into his bed and left Neville to fend for himself. Greg was kind enough to cover him with a blanket before making his way to his own bed. Slowly, everyone managed to filter off to bed. Fleur searched for her husband but became worried when she realized he wasn’t in the house. She was the last one awake when she heard scratching at the back door. Wand ahead of her, she pulled open the back door sharply. Bill was tiredly reaching for the door. He blinked in shock as he saw his petite wife glaring at him from behind her wand. “Where ‘ave you been?” she whispered worriedly. “I was taking care of the tab at the bar. Aberforth and I lost track of time talking. I didn’t mean to worry you,” he soothed as he pulled her into his arms. “I’m just glad you are alright, my love,” she smiled up at him. “Let’s get you to bed, sweet. With the Christmas and the wedding, this is going to be a very long week.” Fleur let her husband lead her to bed and smiled as she remembered her own wedding. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Chr istmas morning dawned with energetic children and less than energetic adults. A sobriety potion was being passed around the table to all the adults, many of which eyed Molly’s fried eggs warily. The family ate leisurely as each member slowly began to return to life. Deus and Nadia wondered why everyone was sick, but let the subject drop once they saw the mountain of presents waiting for them. Amina smiled brightly on her baby broom and zoomed off towards Susan. “You’ll be a good Mummy.” Susan smiled at the little Seer and prayed the child was right as she flew towards Reggie. Amina stared at Reggie for a long time, finally reaching out to hold onto the woman. Reggie was a little shaken by the girl’s actions but let herself be petted and hugged by the girl. With infinite patience, Amina smiled but refused to let anyone remove her from Reggie’s side. Charlie smiled at the girl, but was privately worried about what the girl was Seeing to make her so clingy to Reggie. Shaking the thoughts from his head, Charlie bounced his son in his lap as the boy played with several bows from several packages. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Ginny was fuming. Once again it was time for the Auror Duelling Tournament. Last year, Ginny and Morgana had one quite easily. This year however, they had changed the rules. Instead of teaming up with anyone they liked, the senior Aurors had to choose from one of the trainees. Reggie and Tonks were sitting this year’s tournament out since they were pregnant. Morgana had already paired up with Blaise. Ron and Harry both ignored her and she was the last person picked. All those trainees that had picked on her at the Academy were mocking her loudly as she moved to stand with Jones. “What’s the matter, Weasley? Potter get sick of you? Can’t ride on his cloak tails anymore can you?” they jeered. But true to form, Ginny ground her teeth and ignored the bastards. The tournament started with a huge bang and Ginny and Jones took out fifty of their opponents with Jones’s patented Stun-Bomb Spell. Before long Ginny caught Blaise and Morgana off guard and petrified them while Jones incapacitated Theodore Nott and his partner. Ron was fairing quite well, even though his partner had fallen several minutes before. Harry and his partner managed to get him down since he was outnumbered. He smirked to Ginny who was growing steadily more confident as she realized that they were the last two teams on the field. Harry threw dangerous hexes and spells at the love of his life and she dodged all of them with grace. He groaned as a smile appeared on her face and in a flash, his clothing had caught fire. The trainee standing beside him was shocked and tried to put out the flames, only to be Stunned by Jones. Ginny laughed heartily as Harry clutched to the fragments of his cloak. “Just Stun me already!” he screamed out as the crowd laughed. “Nice legs, Potter,” Jones called back and Stunned the Boy Who Lived. Harry blushed bright red as he fell to the ground, glad he couldn’t be embarrassed any further. Ginny sighed and smiled back to Jones. “Shall we?” she said with a polite little bow. Jones grimaced, knowing full well what she could do to him. “If we must…” The two danced around each other for a few moments before Jones threw the first spell. They sparred for what felt like ages. After nearly a half an hour of volleying hexes back and forth, Ginny got Jones in the knee with a Stinging Hex. “I yield…” he gasped out to her and the forfeit took. Ginny rushed to his side and smiled when he grinned at her. “Well done…you can fight next to me anytime.” “The winner and still champion, Ginny Weasley!” The stadium cheered wildly as Ginny waved to her family. Harry and Ron rushed to hug her tightly. She saw Reggie and Tonks looking on proudly. All those people who had been hateful to her would be forever silenced. She wasn’t just Harry Potter’s girlfriend. She was a damn good Auror. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tatum Moody making his way to sit with Jones. He winked at her slyly before his gaze drifted over Harry, and then Ron. Tatum had asked them to pick other partners. They hadn’t gone easy on her and she still won on her own. She had been proud when she won the year before, because she was the underdog…but this year, she had the respect of the entire Auror community. She smiled as Ron proudly introduced her to several people she didn’t know has ‘his little sister.’ She spotted Theodore Nott eyeing her and pulled Ron in his direction. “Nott, Ron, I want to thank you both for offering me spots on your teams, but I want to work with Jones. He was named head of the Juvenile Affairs Department. He’ll work with messed up kids that need help. I want to work there. If you ever need someone to heat things up, let me know.” With that, she turned from her brother and Nott and moved back to Jones. Tatum was holding his hand as Susan pushed against the knee. Draco joined them in the tent and held out a purple potion for Jones to drink. “Did you make your decision?” Tatum asked gruffly, grimacing slightly when he heard Susan snap something back into place. “I did and if the offer still stands, I’d love to join your new division, Jones,” Ginny said softly. “The offer stands but you are going to have to take a few extra training courses in adolescent psychology, Ministry paid of course,” Jones groaned and smiled at his newest Auror. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ The next few days passed in a whirlwind. Percy had enthusiastically kidnapped his wife right after presents had been opened on Christmas day. Penny had been shocked by Percy’s suggestions and the pair had basked in the glory of their mini-vacation. When they returned a few days later, Grimmauld Place was getting ready for Ron and Hermione’s wedding. The decorations were being prepared, while Molly and Mairead made more food than any of them had ever seen. Seamus smiled as he hugged the Weasley matriarch. “I’d just like to thank you for having Ron,” the blind man grinned. “I’d come to this wedding, just for the smells.” Mairead scolded her son as he nicked a snack and hurried out of the kitchen. “I swear Morgana best keep an eye on him. He’s too much his father’s son!” “If it helps, poor Reggie is putting up with Arthur’s clone,” Molly smirked wickedly as she stirred a pot of potatoes. The two women cackled as they compared their late husbands. Molly smiled as she admired the shine in her friend’s eyes. “How are things with you and Greg?” Mairead grinned at her old friend’s affinity for gossip. “Quite well, thanks. Hermione is such a sweet girl and he gets along wonderfully with Seamus and Morgana.” Molly nodded in understanding and sighed. “You’re both very lucky to have each other. I still can’t get warm at night without my Arthur.” “Don’t give up, Molly,” Mairead said as she drew her friend into a hug. “Arthur would want you to be happy. There may be someone else out there for you.” Together they returned to the preparations and grinned as the hours to the wedding ticked down. At last the final minutes closed in, and everyone gathered in the front drawing room. Remus, Harry, and Ron stood at the front of their makeshift aisle as they waited for the bride to emerge. Ginny glided down the aisle in a sleek, silvery blue gown. Immediately, the guests were captivated by the subtle differences of this wedding. Ginny didn’t carry the traditional flowers; instead she held a thick white candle representing the missed Weasley father. Harry fought not to pant as Ginny moved toward him. Briefly, he caught her wink at him and desperately tried not to let his desire show. Next, Maggie made her way down the aisle. She too was in a Muggle gown. It was periwinkle blue and made her eyes shine brightly. As she passed to stand with Ginny, Ron watched her. He was still in awe of the little girl that claimed him as her father. Tearing his eyes away from Maggie, he found Hermione and her father waiting at the end of the aisle. Hermione held a candle like Ginny’s in her hands as her father removed her satin hooded cloak. The fabric slid from his fingers as he gasped at his daughter. Hermione stood strong and proud in her mother’s wedding gown. She was radiant. The beaded bodice hugged her curves the exact way it had when her mother wore it so many years ago. The soft silk lace trimmed the lines of the sleeveless gown and he felt his eyes water as the vision of his lost wife appeared in his daughter. Tenderly, Greg took his daughter’s arm and led her to Ron. As she reached out to grasp Ron’s hands, Greg took the candle representing his beautiful wife in his hands. He felt Mairead reach for him and hold him as silent tears fell down his cheeks. He vaguely heard Ron promise to place Hermione above every woman, to cherish and worship her. He sniffed when he heard Hermione’s voice state her vows, but heard his wife’s voice. He remembered the words she said to him as they wed. He remembered the vision she was in the gown Hermione wore. He mourned that his wife wasn’t there with him, but took solace in the strong hand that clutched his. Mairead dropped a light kiss onto his cheek before she turned to see Ron kiss his wife for the first time. Ron cupped her face lightly and kissed her ever so tenderly after Remus cast the Marital Spell. Hermione’s eyes shone with unwept tears as he pulled her close and embraced her. The newlyweds heard Harry start cheering behind them and grinned when they felt Maggie jumping up and down by her mother’s skirts. Ron lifted his little girl into his arms a tugged Hermione’s hand as they made their way back down the aisle. At the reception, the champagne and food humbled the most elitist guests. Malfoy groaned in pleasure as another perfect oyster passed his lips. Susan smiled and laughed at her husband; he missed this type of lifestyle sometimes, but was considerably happier, now. Morgana pulled Ron onto the floor for a dance while she left Seamus to Hermione. Seamus smiled as he felt the stiff ribbing of the bodice as he held her waist. They rotated slowly on the dance floor and Hermione sighed grateful to slow down for the first time that day. “Me Mam and your dad seem to be getting along quite well,” Seamus said conversationally. Hermione smiled as she saw her father pull Mairead flush against him. They swayed slightly for a few moments. “I agree; they are good for each other,” Hermione admitted, letting Seamus twirl her slowly. “Hermione,” Seamus cleared his throat. “I think Mam wants to get remarried. She loves your Da and I know he loves her.” Hermione let his words sink in and took a deep breath. “I miss my own mum, as I’m sure you miss your father.” “Aye,” he answered. “…but I want him to be happy and if I have to accept you as a miserable excuse for a step-brother, so be it,” Hermione’s voice quaked a little but she managed to laugh at the end. Seamus hugged her tightly and they finished the dance in silence. Hermione let her thoughts wander to her father. She spied him sitting by Molly and giggled a little when he pulled Mairead into his lap. Ron was dancing with Maggie and her heart leapt at the sight. She let her heart lead her and moved across the floor to dance with her husband and daughter. When Percy had returned that day, he had arrived with the finalized papers. The little girl was officially Magdalena Diane Weasley. The new husband and wife cuddled their little girl close as they danced. After a while, Ron whispered something in Maggie’s ear and she ran off to dance with Thadeus. “Ready to go, love?” Ron murmured softly, so only Hermione could hear. She beamed up at him and let him lead her stealthily away from the party. They thought they had been sneaky. They thought they had gotten away without being pranked, but if they had been paying closer attention, they might have seen Molly and Tonks raise their glasses in silent salute. The party continued on and twenty minutes later Hermione’s voice carried over the reception. “MOLLY, BRAVO. TONKS, WE’RE EVEN.” The Weasley boys rushed to sit with their mother and Tonks. Harry was laughing but he had no idea why. Just the thought of someone getting one over Hermione made him giddy. “What did you do!” the twins demanded. “You lot remember how Hermione charmed my hair to change colours and Remus would be…ahem…affected?” Tonks smiled when the crowd nodded. “Well, we tweaked that idea. Hermione’s dress was laced with a potion that would make her AND Ron more randy than ever before.” There was a brief pause before all the adults exploded into laughter. Molly smiled at them as she collected the children for bed. “When does it wear off?” Harry asked with a chuckle. “When they say the password of course, or twelve hours…whichever comes first,” Tonks grinned evilly. Ginny laughed into Harry’s shoulder. “Dare I ask, what was the password?” Remus bit his lip and looked from his wife to Molly and back again. “Let me take a wild guess? Viktor Krum?” Molly turned bright red and turned back to the children. Tonks laughed and cried, nodding all the same. Once again the party was dissolved to raucous laughter, everyone anxious to welcome Mrs. Hermione Weasley home. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ The next night, another party was in full swing. Blaise had come for the New Year’s party like he promised. He was currently snogging Colin in a closet. Jones and Tatum had arrived together. Though no one inquired, it was clear that the couple had been together for a very long time. Remus had spent the entire time trying to capture his wife in a dark corner to have his merry way with her. So far, he had his fun twice, but that was hardly enough. Charlie was seen slowly seducing his wife as they crept out of the drawing room and towards their bedroom. Draco and Susan were simply content to count down the final hours of the year with their little Luci. Thadeus and Samuel played with Maggie and Nadia, though they were all quite tired. Molly had sequestered the other children in bed several hours before, and smiled and the playful youngsters. Fleur and Penny were chatting away as they played cards with their husbands. Fred and Roni were counting how many times one of the couples would dash up the stairs for a bit of naughty fun…so far they were up to eighteen trysts. George and Verity had simply vanished hours ago, citing the need to make slow passionate love to one another. The family had laughed and waved them off, wishing them a Happy New Year. At half ‘til midnight, Seamus and Morgana burst into the home, with Malachi, Hannah, and Mallory in tow. The two couples had found a Muggle chapel and eloped. Seamus let his mother yell and whack him over the head with a book. He laughed even harder when she collected Morgana in her arms and welcomed her with all the love and support she had. Greg shook the young couples’ hands. Hannah and Malachi were positively beaming at each other. Mallory smiled at them and squirmed out of their grasp to hurry after Samuel. Congratulations abounded the two couples and they all cheered as the clock began to count down to the New Year. “TEN!” Blaise and Colin fell out of the closet with a loud bang. “NINE!” Harry grasped Ginny’s face in his hands and kissed her lovingly. “EIGHT!” Penny gasped as Percy pulled her into his arms. “SEVEN!” Mairead’s eyes misted over as her son kissed his new wife. “Greg, let’s get married.” “SIX!” Molly handed out noisemakers to the children “FIVE!” Greg Granger smiled at the beautiful woman in his arms, kissing her furiously. “FOUR!” Petunia smiled as she collected Maggie in her arms, already hoping for a grandchild. “THREE!” Greg beamed at his new fiancée and pulled her up the stairs. “TWO!” Dudley dipped Hagar into a low kiss, earning catcalls from Fred and Roni. “ONE!” Fleur shouted at her husband. “Bill! Put me down!” “HAPPY NEW YEAR!” And so several small families celebrated the dawn of a new year. Together, they prayed for joy and blessings as the new day approached. None of them could have seen what lay around the corner for them. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* DA RK MOTHER CLAIMS PREGNANT WEASLEY!!! Harry Potter, long time friend of the Weasley family, has reported to Aurors that Auror Regina (Craven) Weasley was kidnapped from her home, January 3rd. The young Auror had returned home with her husband, Charles Weasley, after the holidays. The two had returned to their small home in London, when they were attacked from the inside. Apparently, the attackers bound Mrs. Weasley and duelled with Mr. Weasley who was defending their son. In a valiant effort to save their young son, Matthias, he was forced to Disapparate. When he returned, his wife was gone. Potter reports that a note was left behind, indicating that Mrs. Weasley would be killed once she had given birth to her baby, due in June. The family begs for anyone with information to come forward. Rita Skeeter Personal Press Agent for Harry Potter |
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