Laden down with packages, two young girls made their way towards The Leaky Cauldron. With a polite wave to Tom, they headed towards the fireplace.
Placing the packages in just right, the girls Flooed the day’s work home and then prepared to enter the fireplace themselves. Looking at them, you would notice the subtle differences in height and hair, but it was quite clear that these girls were twins. The slightly taller one stepped in first and grabbed the powder. Throwing it down, she enunciated clearly, “Number Twelve Grimmauld Place”.
Popping up in the kitchen of their home, the girls quickly put the packages in their father’s study. Glancing at the clock, they saw that they had only minutes to spare. They took off their coats and, plopping down into the sofa in the parlor, each grabbed a book from the end tables. Not five minutes later, the door opened and a cacophony of sounds entered the house; their mother and three younger brothers made a herd of elephants sound quiet. Trying to admonish one son and grabbing the collar of another, the girls’ mother entered the room.
“Lily Katherine, Abigail Briana, please tell me you have done something productive today?” asked their mother with a clear look of frustration on her face.
“Oh yes, Mum, we’ve cleaned our room and done the work Dad left for us,” said Lily.
She eyed Abby just to make sure she was following the plan.
Abby turned to her brothers and beckoned them in as commanding a voice as possible. “Boys, let’s go and clean up before dinner. Come on, you little critters.”
Ginny Potter made her way to an armchair across the room and sat down. Sheer exhaustion clear in both her face and body language, she asked, “Is there something your sister or you want? Because that was unexpected.”
Lily turned to her mom and smirked, “No, Mum, you just really looked tired. I think Abby just felt bad for you.”
“Sometimes I think growing up with Fred and George made me jaded,” her mother mused. After scanning the room for just a moment, she placed her hands over her face and gently rubbed her temples. Steadying herself on the arms of the chair, she rose. “And next on the agenda...”
Abby came bounding down the stairs and into the room like a bouncing ball falling down and stopped right next to her twin. She turned to her mother and said as she blew out a breath, “The boys are all cleaning up and then promised to do something nice and quiet until dinner.”
Looking at both girls, Ginny started walking towards the kitchen, calling over her shoulder, “I’d say that gives us about five minutes to get dinner together in peace, wouldn’t you say?”
Happy to see their mother back in form, the girls giggled as the followed her into the kitchen.
Dinner at the Potter home was quite reminiscent of a Weasley dinner: lots of talking, whispering, and the occasional elbow in the butter dish. All five children were at the table by the time their father came home. Harry walked into the room and smiled at the motley crew that was gathered at the kitchen table. His twin girls were sitting together, conversing in quiet a tone, which was never a good sign. The girls both had Harry’s dark hair, but Abby had Ginny’s brown eyes while Lily’s, like Harry’s, were green. James, the next oldest, was almost the spitting image of Fred and George. Sirius and Theodore were almost carbon copies of Harry, but their hair was lighter and much more tame then Harry’s had ever been.
“Evening, everyone.” Harry walked right through the kitchen and into his study. He put down his briefcase and scanned the room, making sure the girls had been successful. He then returned to the kitchen, kissed Ginny on the cheek, and sat down at the head of the table. The din of noise that had quieted for just a moment returned as Harry started to eat. Glancing every once and a while at Ginny, Harry could see how stressed out his wife was feeling. She had often made the comment about how easy her mum had made it look. Harry thought she was doing an amazing job and reminded himself to mention it after dinner.
Nearly three months earlier, Harry had committed a cardinal sin for husbands: he had forgotten their anniversary. It had taken the girls reminding him days later for him to remember. Ginny had been so forgiving that it had only made Harry feel worse. From that day, Harry had tried to make sure he did something nice for her each day. Sometimes it was a futile effort, seeing as Ginny was so busy, but he was trying. When she could, Ginny acknowledged Harry’s attempts and even said how happy she was to be appreciated. Seeing the way Ginny put herself into both her family and her work, Harry decided Ginny needed a reminder of how special she was. Knowing the boys could never be trusted, he had enlisted the help of the girls; they were the only ones who knew the plans Harry had for the weekend.
After the dinner clean-up, each of the Potter children went off in their own directions. Harry went into the living room and sat down next to Ginny.
“How was your day?” he asked as he put his hand on her shoulder.
“It wasn’t so bad, but I think you should take the boys out next time. Utterly knackering and totally frustrating.” Ginny put her head on Harry’s shoulder.
“Have I mentioned lately what a wonderful job you have been doing with the children? They are getting to be so big now,” said Harry with a smile.
“Thank you for the compliment, Harry.”
“You deserve it.” Harry turned his head down and kissed her on the head. Just then, there was a loud noise from upstairs. Without even a thought, Ginny rose and started muttering something about five minutes alone with husband and bedlam. Harry waited for Ginny to be upstairs before he went searching for Lily and Abby. He found both girls in their room lying on the floor with copies of Witch Weekly.
“Thank you, girls, for all that you accomplished today,” said Harry as he walked into the room.
“All that is left, Dad, is to get the dress and we are all done; that’s why we are poring over the magazines. Mum has this habit of dog earring the page. Says it is something about how it was the only thing Aunt Hermione would let her dog ear,” said Lily with a smile.
“Do you really think she has no idea, Dad?” Abby got up and moved over to her bed.
“Yes, Abby, I really think she hasn’t a clue. I just hope everything goes as planned.” Harry had a nervous look on his face.
Lily moved over to him and tried to cajole him; she put a smile on her face that distinctly resembled her maternal grandmother and said, “It will all be fine, Dad; we will have our end handled.”
“And you know she is going to love it, Dad. You are just a little nervous.” Abby joined her sister in trying to bolster their father.
Harry looked at his girls; they really were so grown up now.
“What did I do to deserve such wonderful children?” asked Harry as he mussed both of their hair.
In unison, they replied, “You married Mum.”
The next few days went fairly quickly. Harry tried to tie up any loose ends before the weekend; he had asked for a holiday a month back, but wanted them to have no excuse to call on him. He was late to dinner every night until the weekend, but the end here definitely justified the means. On Thursday evening, Ginny received an owl from work telling her that she should meet the Headmistress at the school the next day.
Although she was sure there was nothing, all the same she turned to Harry and said, “I hope nothing is wrong.”
“I am sure it is nothing,” Harry said absentmindedly. Although, when Ginny returned to her book, Harry’s grin was as wide as his face.
The next morning, Ginny woke up to silence. This was a rare occurrence; there was usually some noise in the house. Ginny got dressed and made her way down to the kitchen. The only person there was Harry.
“Where are the children?” she asked in exaggerated awe.
“Your mum wanted them for the day; she was missing them,” said Harry as he brought her some eggs, toast, and pumpkin juice.
“What’s the occasion that you are still home?” she questioned.
“I have the day off. I have too much holiday time and they needed me to take today off. You know the Ministry: an extra penny paid is a penny squandered. I figured I would hang with you today. Is that a problem?” Harry made sure it sounded as though he didn’t want to impose on her.
“No, it is not a problem. I would love to have you around today,” she smiled at him and continued. “First stop, Hogwarts.”
After finishing their breakfast and cleaning up, the couple Apparated to the gates of Hogwarts. The headmistress gave them entrance and then asked them to meet her in the Gryffindor common room. Walking through the castle together, Ginny felt nostalgic; even though she spent almost all year here, there were only rare occasions since finishing school that she had got to do this with Harry. When Harry grabbed her by the hand and ducked behind a statue, she had this overwhelming feeling of déja vu. Harry gentled eased her up against the wall and held her face in his hands. Having been married so long, it amazed Ginny that Harry still felt this way about her. There was a sense of belonging when he kissed her, but also a renewed passion that Ginny had not felt in a while.
“You know, Mister Potter, I could get you in trouble for that; I am a teacher after all,” Ginny gave Harry a coy smile and grabbed his hand to start walking.
“Detention with you would be heaven.”
Ginny gripped Harry’s hand tighter and put her head on his shoulder as they walked hand in hand. They walked through the portrait hole and into the Gryffindor common room. Then they sat down on the chair near the fire and waited for the headmistress to come. Not wanting to waste a minute of their time alone, Ginny and Harry starting to catch up with each other. Amazingly, even if you live in the same house and speak everyday, you can still not manage to say the things that are really on your mind. After twenty minutes or so, Harry turned to Ginny and said, “Let’s go look at my old room, I haven’t been up there in years.” They made their way upstairs to Harry and Ron’s old dorm room. Harry opened the door and said, “After you.”
Ginny walked in and saw a sea of flowers. She put her hand over her mouth and started to cry; she turned to Harry, too much in awe to speak.
Harry flicked his wand and conjured a seat for her to sit in as the beds were covered in flowers. When she sat down, he started speaking.
“That day in Slughorn’s class, when the Amortentia was brewing, I smelled blooming flowers. Later that day, I smelled the same thing in the Great Hall. You had just walked in, but I would never have put that thought together. Over time that year, I wrestled with my feelings for you. It was here in this room I figured out how I felt for you. I knew that I needed to be with you, and I still do. I know you said it was okay with you that I forgot our anniversary a little ways back, but it wasn’t okay with me. With all that has happened in our life, I am so sorry I took you for granted for even a second.”
Ginny got up from her chair and put her arms around Harry’s neck. When her lips were millimeters from Harry’s she said, “I never thought you took me for granted; time and family change a relationship. I know you love me and I have always loved you.”
Harry put his hands around her waist and lifted her so they were eye to eye. There, again, was the mischievous glint in Harry’s eyes. He turned his head and put his mouth next to her ear. As he spoke, the heat of his breath sent shivers down her spine as did the words that followed.
“This is only the beginning,” he whispered, then pulled his head back and gently grazed her lips with his.
Harry took a step away from Ginny and a box came flying into his hands. He handed her the box and said, “Change into this before we go. I hope you like it.” With that, he walked out of the room and waited for the sound. Not thirty seconds later, there was an audible gasp heard on the other side of the door. Upon hearing it, Harry went downstairs to wait for his wife. Ten minutes later, a vision of beauty walked down the stairs. Dressed in a lovely, pale green dress with matching jewelry that the twins had picked out, Ginny looked radiant.
“Funny how, even though I see you every morning, sometimes the sight of you can take my breath away.”
“Sometimes I like to remember the younger you, who would fumble over his words when I came into a room. You have definitely gained suave and charm over the years,” responded Ginny as she took his hand.
“I had a great teacher. That and I had the girls prep me,” said Harry with a laugh.
“Abby and Lily know?” Shocked that either girl had not slipped up or spilled to their mother, Ginny laughed along with Harry.
“I had to enlist assistance and they were the most qualified. The boys and my accomplices are spending the night at the Burrow. We have the whole day and night to ourselves, and I have it all mapped out.”
With all that had just occurred, it finally dawned on her that even the Headmistress had been in on this. “Harry, you really didn’t have to do all this,” she said.
All he answered was, “Yes, I did.”
After leaving Hogwarts, they lunched at the restaurant where Harry was supposed to have proposed. Spending most of the meal reminiscing over their years together and how much the children had grown, time seemed to float by. After paying the tab, Harry led Ginny to a small corner of the wizarding restaurant.
“I want you to put this on.” Silk fabric covered Ginny’s eyes and she couldn’t see a thing.
Harry put his arm in Ginny’s and turned to her. “I know this might be a bother, but I want you to side-along Apparate so I can keep the final destination a secret.”
With conviction in her voice Ginny replied, “I trust you, Harry.”
There was a familiar smell wafting through the air. Ginny knew where she was before Harry could even speak. She did not, however, tell Harry this; she didn’t want to ruin his surprise. She felt Harry knock at a door and then it silently opened. Just the air around her felt familiar, Harry started to remove the blindfold. She gazed out into the Bheith Aris; Harry and Ginny had spent some of their happiest moments here. The inn’s owner came over to hug her and shake Harry’s hand. Over the years, they had come here many times; actually any time that they could get away. Without even a word, the owner led Harry and Ginny to their usual room.
“Wow, you really did think of everything, Harry,” said Ginny as the entered the room.
The door closed silently as the inn keeper took his leave. Already there in the room were the bags the girls had packed with their clothing and some other gifts. Harry sat Ginny down and retrieved a book from one of the bags. He handed her a brown leather bound album. On the front cover, embossed in gold were the words, “Our Mum”. Ginny opened it and on the first page was a picture of their children. It wasn’t the perfect picture that one would assume would be in a gift as such; it, however, was a true picture with the children laughing, fighting, and joking. Ginny started to cry. Each of the next pages were individual pictures of the kids with a letter about how they felt about their mother.
“When I started talking to the twins about what I was doing, they felt that, as your children, they needed to do something too. They know they take you for granted and wanted to show you how much you mean to them. The boys needed a little prodding… or a lot of prodding; depends who you ask. In the end, Abby and Lily got them to sit still long enough to do it.” Harry laughed as he remembered Sirius groaning as Abby had him by the ear. Lily had used blackmail to get James to concede to putting emotions on paper.
Ginny rubbed her hands over the book and closed it with a kiss. Putting it down on the night table, she walked over to Harry. She laid her head against his chest. This was her favorite place in the world; it was comforting and invigorating all at once. She turned her head up to look at him. “Harry James Potter, I love you for this, and for everything, really.”
They spent the night together with rejuvenated love and unearthed passion. Waking up in the late hours of the day, they slowly got dressed and made their way downstairs. As they got closer to the stairwell, Ginny could hear the loudness of the people downstairs. When they reached the landing, she realized that most of the voices were that of her family. She looked up at Harry who was standing the stair above her.
“Not in so many words, but I told you I loved you here. You told me we were starting a family here. I know how much love and family mean to both of us so it wouldn’t have been complete unless we got to share it.”
Ginny blew Harry a kiss and went running for her children. Engulfing the girls in hugs, she turned from one to the other to tell them how much she appreciated them. She switched to the boys just as Harry started making his way to the girls. The women made their way to Ginny, begging for a recount of all the details. The men started ribbing Harry as to how he had ruined it for them all. Finally sitting down together near the hearth that held so many memories for them, Harry looked at Ginny and knew she felt the same thing he did. The serenity of being in a beloved place with loved ones was a momentary utopia that neither one would take for granted.
Bheith Aris by Tagidi Riva
Chapter Notes: As always the genius of J.K.R is my muse. She created it, I just love it to peices.
This is for my little cyber twins and the person that gave them too me. I have never recieved a better Mother's Day present than this year. You two really are my SJ's.
Thank you again Maia. You are amazingly fantastic.