A/N: This is the very last chapter of the story. I hope that you’ll all enjoy it.
The focal point of the distinctly comfortable sitting room was a large limestone fireplace that was set into one wall. This was because of the vast array of pictures that adorned the wall space above the long mantle piece. There was one huge photo surrounded by ten smaller ones and surprisingly all of the occupants were moving. In fact all of them, with the exception of a couple of moody teenagers, were smiling brightly and waving energetically. The photo in the uppermost left corner had the largest number of people in it.
A strong looking man stood proudly beside his beaming wife and seven children surrounded them. A surly looking teenage boy, who was the image of his father, was trying to edge his way out of the picture and every so often his father would glance around and pull him back inside the frame. Two more boys, one twelve and the other eleven, were playing with a five-year-old girl on the grass in front of their parents. Just beside them twin eight year old girls were tugging on their father’s robes and pleading with him silently. A toddler of not more than two was cradled lovingly against his mother’s shoulder with his legs draping around her belly, which had expanded to such a degree that she was obviously expecting again.
In the next picture along a man with long raven hair was being clambered over by two boys, one at eleven, who had hair as black as the night and the other about nine who had hair as red as a roaring fire. Two little auburn haired girls of four and two sat on either side of their mother howling with laughter at the debacle that was taking place before them. This flame haired woman also had evidence of a stomach on the grow.
The last picture in the row featured a rather shy, middle-aged gentleman who had his arm looped around the shoulders of a woman who had long, curly fuchsia hair. Three children; a tall, skinny pre-teen boy with a pig snout instead of a nose and two girls accompanied them. The elder of the girls was seven and was clinging nervously to her father’s free hand. The other was nearer to five and quite shockingly was able to change her hair from a muddy brown colour to silver and back again.
The photo below this had captured a tall and gangly red-haired man with vibrant freckles. He was standing beside his proud wife who had very bushy brown hair and three small children; two boys and one girl, the eldest boy and their daughter had the same vivid hair as their father, but the little boy in the middle had his mother’s brown hair and that same bookish look about him.
The one beneath this was of another man with red hair, although he was somewhat older than the last. He was chasing several boys between the ages of thirteen and five. The man’s strong red hair was countered by the cool silvery blonde of his wife’s which resulted in their brood having very light hair. The aforementioned blonde woman was watching the chaos cheerfully from a bench in the background.
To the left of that scene was a much shorter and stockier man accompanied by a woman with long dark hair and a set of twin boys with their father’s hair. The photo right next to this had a man who was identical to the one in the picture to his right down to the last freckle; he even had twin boys that were almost duplicates of the other pair. The only distinguishing feature was a slight olive tint to their skin, which could only have come from their mother who was a tall, pretty and athletic black woman.
The picture above this family was headed by a round-faced man with dark hair who was standing beside a woman whose red hair wasn’t nearly as vibrant as the mops that graced the heads of the people before her. Their children were a boy of ten who looked like his mother and a girl of five who took after her father.
The two remaining photos in the collection were much emptier. The first only had two older people in it and although their hair was greying a great deal, their flaming locks were still evident. In the final photo the heavily pregnant woman from the first family, the raven-haired man and the shy gentleman were huddled together closely with their arms around each other and grinning widely into the camera.
The giant picture in the middle had all the people from the surrounding photos gathered together with the older couple in the centre “ they were a big happy family without a care in the world.
A party was raging in the garden of Potter Hall, it was the thirty first of July and a joint birthday party was being held for Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom. “I can’t believe I’m thirty-two already, it feels like only yesterday I was turning seventeen,” Harry sighed.
“And now you’re an old married man with four kids and a fifth on the way, we know, Harry, you say that every year,” Ginny scolded him as she patted her baby bump gently.
“Mummy!” a little voice cried. Ellie, who was laying dishes out on the garden table, looked down and saw her youngest son was tugging on her robes.
“What’s the matter, Dai?” she asked as she picked him up and snuggled him against her hefty stomach, she was due any day now.
“Brian won’t play with me!” he wailed.
“Is that so,” Ellie snapped. She placed her hand across the little ear that was inches from her mouth before she shouted out across the grounds. “Brian Arthur Weasley, you come over here now!” The stocky boy who was Charlie’s double came stomping across the grass from behind a collection of trees in a far corner. Brian was Ellie and Charlie’s first born, he was now fourteen years old, had been at Hogwarts for four years and was eagerly awaiting the start of his fifth year, he was a Beater on the Gryffindor Quidditch team.
“What is it?” he demanded of his mother.
“First off, don’t you take that tone with me, and why won’t you play with your brother?”
“Mum, I haven’t practiced my game the whole time that I’ve been home, if I don’t keep up then I’ll get kicked of the team! I don’t have time to play with that little monster.” He waved his arm over his sobbing brother.
“If you continue to treat him like this then you won’t have to worry about getting kicked off the team when you get back because I’ll implement an instant ban on you!” When Professor McGonagall had become Hogwarts’s headmistress, along with bringing in Hermione to fill the vacant Transfiguration teacher’s post, she had nominated Ellie to be her replacement as Head of Gryffindor house, a position Ellie had held for the last fifteen years. She was still the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher and she still loved every minute of it. While it amused Hermione that she was now teaching the children of all the people she’d gone to school with Ellie felt horribly aged by the acknowledgement of the fact that she was now teaching the children of the first batch of students that she had begun teaching herself all those years ago.
“That’s not fair!” he protested.
“Life’s not fair, get used to it!” she snapped. “Don’t make me get your father out here. Why don’t you take Dai for a ride on your broomstick?”
“I can’t practice with him on my broom!”
“Well you won’t be able to practice if I confiscate it either,” Ellie said dangerously.
“Fine,” he sputtered and grabbed Dai out of his mother’s arms.
“No, it’s not,” Ellie said gently pulling her baby back. “As of now you’re grounded and if I catch you within three feet of that broom I’ll snap it in half. Go and sulk somewhere.” She shook her head as he stalked away from her in the direction of the house. “That boy’s getting too big for his boots. Sweetheart, why don’t you go and play with Luna and Jean, they’re round in the sand pit?” she said to the little boy as she plonked him back on the ground.
“Okay, Mummy,” he sang and ran off around the bushes on the other side of the table to where the sand pit and his cousins were. Luna was Harry and Ginny’s youngest at two, she had been named in memory of Luna Lovegood who had been a good friend to both of them and had unfortunately died in the final confrontation with Voldemort. She was a petite little auburn haired girl who was turning in to quite a chatter box. Jean was Ron and Hermione’s youngest; she was three years old and had the same vivid red locks, freckles and length as her father. One day she was going to be a very tall young lady.
Suddenly a loud bang sounded and a blue puff of smoke came floating out of a third floor window. “That had better not be what I think it is,” Ginny stormed. “Remus Weasley, James Potter and Sirius Lupin, get your backsides down here now!” she shouted up at the window.
“You had best come as well, Fred and George,” Ellie called up after her. “We’re going to have to watch those five like hawks.” The procession of men filed out of the house into a line in front of the two fuming women.
“What were you lot doing?” Ginny commanded.
“Nothing, Aunt Ginny,” the red haired Remus replied; he was Ellie and Charlie’s second eldest son and appeared to be taking on his namesake’s need for adventure.
“Well that ‘nothing’ made an awfully loud racket,” Ellie said to him through narrowed eyes.
“It was just an experiment,” reasoned James, he was the image of the five Potter men that had preceded him. He had the same messy black hair of his father but had no need for the black-rimmed spectacles; he was Harry and Ginny’s first born.
“What kind of experiment?” Ginny persisted with her line of questioning.
“Just a little something or other,” Fred waved his hands in a very nonchalant fashion.
“Don’t even get me started on you two!” she yelled at her brothers. “You pair are the adults here, you’re supposed to be responsible and set and example. You are not supposed to teach them how to blow things up!”
“What fun is life without a little explosion here and there?” George said defensively. “It’s all good and clean Marauder fun.”
“There was nothing good and clean about the things that the Marauders got up to and I don’t appreciate you teaching my son their tricks along with most of yours,” Ellie said sternly.
“We thought you of all people would understand!” Fred said disgustedly. “You used to be the only decent one in the lot!”
“How d’you mean?” Remus turned around to address his uncle.
“Your mum was one of our first testers, she tried out all sorts for us, she wasn’t afraid of a good experiment in her day,” George nodded his head in Ellie’s direction. Remus looked back and saw his mother in a new light.
“Mum, cool!” he exclaimed.
“Very, but I’m not going to have you cause havoc at school. I don’t mind a bit of harmless fun, I like a laugh as much as anyone else, but things blowing up and sending smoke everywhere is too far,” she warned.
“What do you have to say for yourself, Sirius?” Ginny asked Remus and Tonks’s eldest; but he wasn’t paying attention, he was too busy watching over his shoulder as one of Ellie’s twin daughters walked past.
“All right, Alex?” he said with an embarrassed grin. Sirius was rather tall for his age and had the skinny look that accompanied a recent growth spurt. He had inherited his father’s sandy blonde hair but also his mother’s talent for changing aspects of his appearance at will.
“Yeah, you in trouble again?” Alex asked him. She was a boisterous eight year old who had a sheet of long red hair that was usually twisted up in knots. She was never happier than when she was running up and down climbing things with her brothers. No matter how many times her mother washed her clothes she never seemed to be clean. Dirt seemed to gravitate towards her as though she were some kind of magnet.
“Yep,” he nodded in what he hoped was a kind of cool way; he changed his nose from its normal shape to a beak and back again in the hopes of impressing her. She giggled then tore after her cousin Louis who had run past her with his brother Olivier in hot pursuit.
“If I thought grounding any of you would do any good then I would, but it would just encourage you to get up to more mischief. Why don’t you go and get washed up, dinners nearly ready.” Ellie tried to contain the smile that was brewing on her lips. After the boys had disappeared back in to the house the original Remus came strolling out.
“My son has just complained that he got a telling off from you two, what did he do this time?” The adult Remus asked.
“They blew something up,” Ginny answered.
“Not again,” Remus muttered and rolled his eyes.
“I’ve no idea where they get it from,” Ellie grinned. “By the way, we’re going to have to watch out, we have a budding romance on the cards.”
“Who?” he asked eagerly.
“Your son was eyeing up one of my daughters,” Ellie told him.
“Which one?”
“Alex.”
“Was he really? Well that could be quite interesting, he’s obviously got very good taste,” Remus said with a smile.
“It certainly could be interesting, he’s got Uncle James’s knack for trying to look cool. You and I might end up sharing grandchildren,” she pulled a funny face; to her this was a bizarre concept. Remus had been her godfather and here she was talking about having grandchildren with him.
“There’s a strange thought for you, but think you might be jumping to conclusions there. He’s trying to impress her, it’s hardly a marriage proposal, and they’re only young.” Harry said. As Ginny came back to sit next to him he kissed her on the cheek and wrapped his arm around her. “I’m the luckiest man alive,” he mumbled into her ear through her freshly washed hair, she smelled like summer.
“I would have to disagree with you there, Harry,” said the approaching Charlie. He had his youngest daughter Beatrice slung under his arm; she was a jolly and wriggly five year old with voluminous curly copper coloured locks. “I am quite obviously the luckiest man here.” Charlie gave his blooming wife a loving kiss.
“It’s a good job that you said that, Charlie Weasley, a very good job!” Ellie exclaimed as she rubbed her hefty bump uncomfortably. “Bea, there’s a good girl, pop round and get Dai, Luna and Jean from the sandpit.” As soon as she had been placed back on the ground Beatrice ran as quick as her little legs could carry her.
“Dinner’s ready!” Molly called from the far end of the table. The large slab of stone had undergone many extensions over the years to be able to accommodate the entire family which now had a total of forty six members with another two due to be added to that in the next two months. People started emerging from all directions, the four littlest ones came rushing round the bushes in such a hurry that Luna tripped over her own feet and had to be helped back up by Beatrice and Jean. Olivier, Louis and Alex came sauntering back from the direction in which they’d run not too long before, Olivier seemed to have recovered his wand from Louis, who was the second of his four brothers. Brian came skulking back out of the house making emphatic huffs with every step and threw his mother a dirty look. The young troublemakers along with their Uncles Fred and George came bouncing out of a door at the near end of the house shooting water at each other from the ends of their wands merrily while Andrew, Edward, and Gideon, walked tentatively behind them trying to avoid getting water on the books that they were reading. A small figure with curly red hair came marching towards them with three smaller figures behind her, Professor Minnie was leading her ‘students’ Jane, Molly, and Alice, out to the dinner table; the girls had a fondness for playing school. Ron emerged from behind another set of trees at the other side of the garden accompanied by his nephews Percy and Ludo, George’s twin sons, and Damian and Cosmo, Fred’s twin sons; he had been supervising them as they played with a set of rocks that had been bewitched to be giant gobstones. There was a scramble in the middle of the table followed by a dozen explosions. Arty and Colin had been trying to teach Fabian and Christophe how to play little Francoise and their Aunty Dora watched them. The sudden surge of people had sent cards everywhere and caused a number of the cards to explode. Arty was now smoking at the eyebrows while Colin’s face was covered in soot. Fabian and Christophe were staring at them horrified despite the fact that the other two had descended into riotous laughter. There was a bit of a commotion as Francoise burst into tears and had to be passed to Fleur to be comforted, while Tonks tried to gather up the smouldering cards and everyone scrambled for a seat at the table.
The many births in the family had worked out cunningly well, with the exception of Brian, James and Jean; the Weasley, Potter and Longbottom children would all be attending school in pairs or triplets. Remus Junior and Olivier had started Hogwarts at the same time and had just finished their second year. Andrew and Sirius were just about to start their first year and had spent a lot of their summer hanging out with James because he had gone in the year before them and they though it would make them look cool to be friends with someone in the year above. Harry couldn’t help but think that it was great that the kids all had this little network of family throughout the school. It also comforted their mothers to know that they would all look after each other, although this wasn’t so much the case for Remus, Sirius and James; they were bound to cause havoc wherever they went.
Everyone had done well since school, Ron and Harry were amongst the most noted Aurors of their generation and had risen up the ranks of their department quickly, but quite modestly, they put this down to having had so much practice while they were at school. Post-Hogwarts, Neville had a successful career, the most important moment of which had been his discovery that Gillyweed juice could be used to heal cuts. Susan had chosen to be a housewife and raise their two children, Edward and Alice. In her finally year at school Ginny had been offered a place on the Montrose Magpies as a chaser, she had taken this up gleefully and was now Angelina’s team-mate on the most successful team in the Quidditch League. The biggest success story of the family was undoubtedly the Weasley’s Wizarding Wheezes Empire that Fred and George had built. They now had ten shops across the world including branches in Diagon Alley, Hogsmeade, New York, Paris and Beijing.
Dobby came out of the house floating a large birthday cake in front of him, he had made Harry’s name out of cake and smothered it in crimson and gold icing. Everyone sang Happy Birthday to him and he was just about to blow out the candles when somebody halted him. “Don’t forget to make a wish!” Ellie urged over the crowd. He thought about this for a moment, what could he wish for?
He wished for his family to always be so happy and that he would never forget the boy he used to be and all the things that had been brought to him by his scar.
A/N: That's it. The story is finished!
Much love to Sorn, who helped make this fic what it is. And to Davie, who suffered much neglect while i spent countless nights typing this story.
I've been considering writing a little ten chapter fic which gives a peak into some of the most important moments of the gang's lives. Would anybody be interested in reading that. If i get enough requests then i'll do it but if not then i'll leave it be. I hope that you enjoyed the story. Even if you didn't, please leave a review and tell me what you think i did right or wrong. Thanks so much to everyone who has reviewed so far, you've really made my day. THANK YOU!