Chapter Thirty-Eight - Nineteen Years Later

Harry, Al, and Lily went and spent four days in Romania with Nathalie and Charlie in January, enjoying the chance to be together with them, and getting to meet and spend time with some of the kids at the Dragon's Lair Residence. There wasn't much else exciting happening in January. The Cannons won a game, and lost one, and were six and four halfway through what was a pretty mediocre season for them so far.

In February, Harry and the kids spent quite a bit of time helping out with getting everything ready for the Valentine's Day party at the Residence. Since Teddy and Stewart couldn't be with their girls, they sent flowers and gifts by Owl Post, and had to settle for a VirtualChat with them in the evening after the girls were done classes and homework, and after they were finished work. Harry took Ginny to the Marauders Institute dinner and dance, while Al and Lily stayed overnight with Rose, Hugo, Nicolas, and Frederica at the Burrow with Grandma and Grandpa.

Gryffindor won their match against Hufflepuff the weekend after Valentine's Day. Aaron, Arianna, and James scored fifty-two goals before their Seeker caught the snitch to mercifully end the game. Victoire had her seventeenth birthday, and passed her apparition test easily. Teddy turned nineteen, and had his birthday party at the Cottage. Lily joined the Firebolt club on her ninth birthday, and her party included a lengthy game of Quidditch - playing with the new Quidditch set they'd bought her that had Bludgers that beeped hits, and then veered away without hitting the players.

Harry, Ginny, Al, and Lily went to the last game of the season at Hogwarts, and watched as their three Chasers finished up another perfect season with a big win against Ravenclaw to again clinch the Quidditch Cup for Gryffindor. Teddy, Stewart, Bill, and Fleur went with them, and they all were able to spend a little time with James, Aaron, Arianna, Victoire, and Isabelle before having to leave the school grounds again. Victore and Isabelle walked Teddy and Stewart out to the gates, taking the long way around the school grounds to get just a little extra time with the boys, and then it was time for them to leave, and for the girls to go and join the party in the Gryffindor Common Room.

Before they knew it, June had arrived. The Cannons had gone on a second half season tear, and finished with a fifteen win, five-loss record. Isabelle was into her NEWT testing. Victoire, Arianna, Aaron, and James all had their final exams too. James had his twelfth birthday, with a party put on in the Common Room for him, and lots of presents coming in by Owl Post at breakfast from Mum and Dad, his Grandparents, and from Teddy and Stewart.

Ron and the Cannons made it to the finals with an expected win over the Arrows, and an upset win over the first place Puddlemere United team, and faced the Harpies again - who had finished the season in second place, and breezed through two easy victories to get to the Championship game.

The stadium was packed, and everyone was expecting a hard-fought match between the two teams that were now perennial favourites. The Harpies Keeper made a big mistake the week before the game, though. She told reporters at a news conference that Dennis was too old and slow to beat their Seeker, and that Demelza had been a pretty good Chaser back in her day, but that the game had passed the old veteran by, and she should think about retiring.

Harry, Ginny, and the kids watched in fascination as Dennis proceeded to block the Harpies Seeker's every attempt to catch the snitch, allowing his wife to score thirty-nine goals on that mouthy Keeper before they decided that the youngster had learned her lesson, and he caught the snitch to give the Cannons the Championship.

The last day of school finally arrived, and Harry, Al, and Lily were at the train station to pick up their students. Trunks, cages, and bags were sent to the Residence, Cottage, and to Victoire and Isabelle's house using Translocators, and when the hugs and kisses were over, they all headed for the Marauders Mall, where they were meeting Ginny, Bill, Fleur, Teddy, and Stewart for lunch.

The five students were full of news about school, how well they'd done on exams, and excited to find out what they'd be doing all summer - although Isabelle already knew that she'd be working at the Institute. The only things they knew about for sure was the annual trip to Marauders Paradise, and that Stewart and Isabelle were going to get married while they were all there on the island, since their adopted family, and most of their friends would be there for that week already.

During lunch, Ginny let Arianna and Aaron know that they had jobs as game testers at the Institute for the summer, if they wanted them - which they absolutely did. Isabelle was starting her new job on Monday. She wouldn't get her NEWT results for a while, but they all knew she'd aced all of her exams. Victoire found out that she had a summer job working for her Grandmother and Aunt Penelope.

She went with Fleur after lunch to find out more about what she'd be doing, and Isabelle went to the Institute with Ginny, where she was going to meet some of the other Researchers, and be shown the lab that had been prepared for her. Bill, Teddy, and Stewart all went back to work, and Harry took the rest of the gang shopping for the afternoon before going back to the Cottage, where the kids played outside while Harry cooked dinner.

Aaron and Arianna were staying overnight, because they were going on the shopping trip with everyone for the day on Saturday before they'd head back to the Residence to settle in for the summer. Harry watched the kids play from the kitchen window. James looked like he'd grown an inch or more since Christmas. Aaron and Arianna had turned fourteen. She was becoming a beautiful young woman, and from what Arianna said in her letters, her brother was turning the heads of more than a few of the girls at school, even though none of them had managed to catch him yet.

They had a quiet evening at home, eating outside, then playing together until after dark. Aaron, James, and Arianna stayed up later, but Harry, Ginny, Al, and Lily all turned in fairly early, wanting to be rested and ready to go for the big shopping day.

Aaron and Arianna needed new clothes for work, and all of the kids needed summer clothes and swimwear, so it was a busy morning devoted to clothes shopping, followed by lunch, and then the boys were let loose, having managed to at least get enough new clothes to start their summer with before boredom had set in and they all lost interest in the whole clothes shopping experience.

The girls, with seemingly endless energy, were able to shop all afternoon too, trying on clothes and shoes, then making sure they accessorized with purses, bags, and everything else that seemed to be required for a girl to get through the day. Harry was getting smarter in his old age, though, and so he carried a large supply of Translocators with him, and sent regular shipments to the Cottage or to the Residence as they went along.

He and Bill would walk along behind the girls whenever they crossed paths and Fleur, Victoire, and Isabelle joined Ginny, Arianna, and Lily to check out a store or two before they'd again be split up as the older girls would be off to stores that carried clothes geared to their age group, while Ginny would take Arianna and Lily to other stores. When they were done, Harry took Aaron and Arianna back to the Residence, while Ginny went to the Cottage with James, Al, and Lily. The rest of the weekend was reserved for just the five of them to hang out and relax.

There had been someone to help out with the kids every summer for quite a few years now, and that was one of the things this summer that was different. When Harry was off doing Wizengamot or Foundation work, James was in charge. All four of them played Quidditch nearly every morning after breakfast, and even though Lily's Firebolt had the speed limited, she was already showing a lot of promise, and she definitely had the passion for the game that her oldest brother and her parents had. Al was a good player - but he just liked to play for fun.

Ron and Hermione had a big birthday party for Rose's eleventh birthday. She looked exactly like her mother at that age, and Harry smiled as he watched his niece playing with her cousins at the party.

"It's like going back in time," Mum told him as she walked up beside him. "Watching Rose and Al is a lot like watching you and Hermione back when the two of you were first years." Harry hadn't really thought about it like that before, but he guessed that'd be what others that had known them when they were kids would see in their children. He laughed and smiled at her comments.

"Add Lily and Hugo into the group, and we've pretty much got a copy of the old gang," he said, and Molly laughed too.

"You've all got a pretty special bunch of kids, and Arthur and I are finding being grandparents is a lot more fun - we get to wind them up, then send them home with their parents."

Harry laughed again. "Not that it takes much to wind them up."

During the school year, Teddy, and sometimes Stewart, were over to the Cottage for dinner two or three times a week, but with Isabelle being finished school, and Victoire home for the summer, they weren't over quite as often. Aaron and Arianna came home with Ginny for dinner at least twice a week, practiced Quidditch with James and whoever else wanted to play, and stayed overnight sometimes too.

They both loved their summer jobs, and from what Ginny told him, they were two of the best at testing games that they'd ever had at the Institute, since they both seemed to have a knack for seeing the little glitches that were expected in test versions of games.

Harry took the kids on one or two outings every week, and helped Stewart out with the things he had to do to get ready for the wedding. Teddy was Stewart's best man, and Victoire was Isabelle's maid of honour. Ginny and Fleur were both busy and excited about helping the two girls with picking out dresses, and all of the other details that had to be worked out even for a pretty small wedding like this one would be.

The weekend before the trip to Marauders Paradise, Teddy and Victoire put on a couples only party for Stewart and Isabelle. Harry and Ginny were there, as were most of the Weasley aunts, uncles, and Grandparents, along with the Delacours, Gabrielle, and Kevin. They had friends from school, the Residence, and work. Teddy's back yard had more than enough room for everyone, and it was a beautiful afternoon and night for an outdoor party. There were gifts for the couple, games, dancing, and lots of great food, and everyone had a really great time celebrating the impending end of Stewart and Isabelle's status as single young adults.

During the week before the trip, Harry and Ginny were both busy with getting everything ready not only for the wedding, but to also help Susan and the Foundation to get the kids ready for the trip. Aaron and Arianna stayed at the Cottage the night before they were to leave for the island. They were scheduled to be one of the very first groups to arrive, and they'd be getting there just after dawn local time, so they all stayed up late, and slept in later the next morning, so that by the time they all got ready to go, they were on time for their TransPortal trip, and completely rested up to start a whole day in paradise.

Teddy and Stewart had a later departure time, and wouldn't arrive on the island until nearly lunchtime with the two boys they were chaparoning. Bill, Fleur, Victoire, and Isabelle would arrive with their two kids around nine-thirty. When Harry and Ginny had settled into their suite with the kids, they went to have breakfast in the Atrium, then Ginny and the kids went to play while Harry helped Gabrielle and Megan with welcoming and helping the groups of kids and chaperones who were coming in from all over the world.

He was on-duty doing that until noon, and then he met up with Ginny and the kids for lunch at one of the beachfront cafés. They all spent the afternoon at the Water Park, returning to their suite late in the afternoon, but in time to get dressed up for the opening night banquet.

The meal, and the staff entertainment that followed were a lot of fun, and after that ended, Aaron, Arianna, James, and Al headed for the teens nightclub, while Harry and Ginny took Lily to the ice cream bar and the kids nightclub to play a few games before going back to the suite for the night.

Aaron and Arianna didn't need much chaperoning. That gave Harry and Ginny the time to spend each day helping to get the last few details for the wedding finished. Wednesday evening, everyone that was invited to the wedding gathered on the beach where Stewart had proposed to Isabelle.

Bill was every bit the proud father as he walked his beautiful adopted daughter down the short aisle and handed her off to a nervous, smiling Stewart. The ceremony was enchanting and there weren't very many dry eyes among the small group as they exchanged vows and rings. They both shyly kissed when they were pronounced husband and wife, and then were congratulated by everyone before having pictures taken, and then going for dinner with everyone in one of the private dining rooms at the hotel.

Teddy was going to be watching both boys for the rest of the week, and Gabrielle had one of the private beach houses reserved for the newlyweds to stay in for the next two and a half weeks that they'd be spending on the island - a combination honeymoon, and for Stewart, work trip. He'd be helping out on the departure and arrival days, and work with Megan as needed the rest of the second and third Foundation weeks, but they had the rest of this week for themselves, and a few days of work on the island wasn't too hard to take in exchange for a nearly three week long honeymoon together.

When the dinner had ended, and the newlyweds had left for their bungalow, Harry and Ginny took the kids and went to change into casual clothes, then took them all for their scheduled Haunted Island Adventure. Teddy, Victoire, and the two boys were in their group, and it was fun to watch the two young kids as they experienced the adventure for the first time.

After they'd finished that, Harry and Ginny offered to take the boys for the night so that Teddy and Victoire could go out dancing, and so after a stop off at Teddy's suite for changes of clothes, they took Al, Lily, and the two boys back to their suite. Arianna, James, and Aaron had already left them for the teen dance club. Lily climbed into the big bed in Arianna's room, leaving her room and it's two beds for the boys, and all four of the kids were quickly asleep.

Harry and Ginny stayed up and talked while they waited for the other kids to get back. When they came in to the suite, Harry and the boys headed for their beds, but Arianna and Ginny stayed up for a little late night girl talk. Harry was already asleep when Ginny finally climbed into their bed, and didn't wake up as she snuggled up next to him and he automatically wrapped an arm around her waist. She sighed, contented, and drifted off to sleep too.

During the rest of the week, they played, went on rides, and had as much fun as they could possibly fit into a week. They went and had dinner, and spent the evening with Gabrielle, Kevin, and Michael at their house, and an entire afternoon with Lisa, Marcus, Carolyn, and Brianna at the beach. They'd seen the other couple and the two girls around during the rest of the week, and all four had gone to Stewart and Isabelle's wedding and dinner, but they didn't get any other time to spend with them that week.

Harry and Ginny had been busy until the wedding, and Lisa, Marcus, and the girls had spent a lot of the last few days of the week with Megan and her boyfriend, who'd both taken two days off to spend with their friends while they were on the island.

Their Residence wasn't in the final day of competition for the Phoenix Cup again this year, but they went and cheered on the other Residences as they competed for the honour. The ending banquet was another success, and the ten Residences that were chosen to put on the talent show after dinner did a great job of entertaining everyone.

Aaron, Arianna, and James went to spend a last night going on rides and stopping at the dance club. Harry and Ginny took Al and Lily on a few rides too, then had a late night snack, and went back to their suite. They had an early morning departure time, and the next morning they packed up, had a quick breakfast, and headed for home.

Harry and the kids spent the first few weeks of August enjoying lazy days at the Cottage, mixed with visits to the Residence, and the other events that were happening during the month. Harry's thirty-seventh birthday was on the Monday after they got back from the island, and Ginny and the kids took him out for dinner. Ginny's thirty-sixth birthday was on a Friday, so they took a three-day weekend, and went to their island to celebrate. Most of the family stopped by to spend an afternoon or evening with them, and Mum and Dad stayed from Friday night until they all went home on Sunday.

Isabelle and Stewart got back from their three weeks at Marauders Paradise, and after she saw the graduation and wedding present in the driveway of their house when they'd gotten home, her second stop had been to apparate to the Cottage and give Ginny and Harry hugs before the couple headed to Bill and Fleur's house for a welcome home dinner with her parents, sister, and Teddy.

Albus had his eleventh birthday party at the Cottage with cousins and friends playing games all day, and then spending the night camping in the yard. Hugo had his ninth birthday party, and his shiny new Firebolt barely touched the ground for the rest of the day.

Teddy and Victoire had stopped over at the Cottage more often while Stewart and Isabelle had been at Marauders Paradise, having more free evenings to spend with Harry, Ginny, and the kids, but once the two couples had been reunited by the middle of August, they were again busy most nights, wanting to spend time together before Victoire would have to go back to Hogwarts in just a couple of weeks.

The Hogwarts letters arrived, and James had done very well in his first year - not quite as good as his mother, but better than his father's first year grades. Al was excited about starting school this year, and the two boys talked about Hogwarts all the time. James teased his brother constantly about the things that could happen to him at school, and about what House he'd get sorted into, and even the normally easy-going Al was starting to get exasperated with his brother. Victoire had straight O's for her sixth year, and had been named Head Girl. Aaron and Arianna both passed all of their classes again this year, and were going into their fourth year.

Harry and Ginny took Aaron, Arianna, James, and Al to Diagon Alley for the back to school shopping trip. The four students were fitted for robes, books and supplies were purchased, and Al went with Harry to Olivanders for his wand. They had lunch at the Mall, then the girls spent the afternoon at SpaMagic while Harry and the boys went back to the Cottage.

Ginny took those last few days of August off, and they spent two of them on the island, and the last two nights before the kids would be going to school at home getting everything ready, and spending as much time with James, Al, Arianna, and Aaron as they could. The twins had seen the chaos that was James getting ready to go to Hogwarts, and had politely asked that Harry and Ginny just let them go with the other kids from the Residence, and give themselves a little extra time to get James and Al to King's Cross Station without having the added rush of picking them up too.

They'd taken all of the kids out for dinner the last night of August, then dropped Aaron and Arianna off at the Residence with long goodbye hugs and kisses, since there was a good chance that they wouldn't see them at the station, which was always crowded, and then went back to the Cottage. It was late when Harry and Ginny finally climbed into bed, having checked and double-checked the boy's trunks, and making sure nothing was forgotten.

"I wonder if Victoire's having a nice date with Teddy before she has to go back to school," Ginny wondered out loud to Harry. He smiled to himself, knowing that she definitely was, since Teddy had recruited him to help pick out her back to school gift.

"I'm sure she is," he answered. There must've been some hint in his voice, because she turned and looked into his eyes.

"What secret have you been keeping?" she asked him. When she saw the sparkle in his eyes, she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him. "He's asking her tonight, isn't he?" It wasn't really a question, and Harry nodded.

"He probably already has," he answered. "I wonder if she said 'yes'?"

Ginny laughed. "Like there'd be any doubt." She kissed him again, and then she snuggled back into his arms and started to drift off to sleep. "If I forgot to tell you today, I love you, Harry." He smiled and kissed her neck. His 'I love you, too' wasn't heard by his already sleeping wife.

Harry was making breakfast, and listening to Lily explain to him why she should get to go to Hogwarts this year too. He smiled at her.

"I'm really sorry, honey, but you have to be eleven to go to Hogwarts, so you're stuck here with me, Mommy, and Fluffy for two more years," he told her. Ginny came in then and distracted Lily from the inevitable - 'but I want to go this year!'

"Look a the bright side, Lily," she told her daughter, "you get both of us all to yourself for the next two school years. You get to pick the outings, and go with us on our two week vacations at Marauders Paradise, and have all of the fun while James and Al have to study and go to classes, and do homework."

Lily didn't exactly look like she thought that was a fair trade today, but once she got a chance to find out what it was like, they were sure that their sunny little girl would be back in full force - probably by later this afternoon after Harry took her to the Mall in Paris for a Daddy and daughter play day at the amusement park there. The boys both joined them in the kitchen for breakfast, and then it was time to get the car loaded up and drive to King's Cross Station.

Victoire had said goodbye to her parents this morning so that Teddy could take her to the train and they could have a little privacy to say their own goodbyes. She looked at her watch and groaned - they only had fifteen more minutes before the train was leaving, and then she wouldn't see her fiancée until the Christmas holiday. When she'd gotten home last night, she'd woken her parents up to tell them, and show her Mum the ring that Teddy had given her. She'd sent a picture and a QuillMessage to Aunt Ginny too, but hadn't gotten an answer until this morning, congratulating her. She threw her arms around Teddy's neck, and gave him a kiss that she hoped he'd remember for the nearly four months between now and those holidays.

"Teddy! What are you doing here?" They both looked over to where James stood, mouth hanging open.

"I'm here to see Victoire off," Teddy told James. "Do me a big favour and go away." They were both laughing as the indignant James stomped off.

"Now, where were we?" Victoire purred at him, kissing him again. "Now I remember," she breathed between kisses. Closing her eyes, she threw herself into that kiss goodbye.

"I love you, Teddy," she whispered when they were out of time. He smiled, looking deeply into her blue eyes.

"I love you too, Victoire," he told her quietly. "I'm really going to miss you." She hugged him one more time.

"I'll miss you too," she told him. Teddy watched as she got on the train, and when he couldn't see her any more, he left for work. He loved his family, but sometimes you just needed to deal with things yourself, and right now he was juggling the joy of Victoire agreeing to marry him when he'd proposed to her last night, with being sad today that she had to go back to school, and they'd be apart until Christmas.

Penelope was on the platform with Percy and Nicolas, seeing her son off for his first year at Hogwarts. She was pretty sure she'd seen Ginny's fiery red head go past, but with the steam and the crowds she couldn't be sure. Percy was giving his son a lecture on broom maintenance, and she groaned to herself. Her son ought to have an award for the unending patience he had for his father. Maybe Nicolas would get a chance to let loose a bit at Hogwarts. She really hoped so. Hanging around with James and Al every day would help with that. She smiled as she was about to add Rose to that list, but her niece was a pretty serious little girl herself.

"Percy, I think he's got it," she told her husband, laying a hand on his arm. "He needs to get on the train soon." Percy only needed eight or nine more sentences to 'wrap it up', and then Nicolas was hugging them both goodbye.

"You can do all of the work and everything your father wants you to do," she whispered as he hugged her, "but try to have fun too." He smiled at her, a gleam in his eyes that had her smiling back.

"I will, Mum," he promised. "I love you." She hugged him one last time.

"I love you too," she answered, her eyes filling with tears as they ran out of time. When he was on the train and out of sight, she sighed as she and Percy turned to leave the platform. "I guess it's just the two of us again - at least during the school year," she told him. Percy put his arm around her, and smiled one of the still rare smiles that made her heart flutter.

"That won't be all bad," he said, grinning at her. "How about I take you out to dinner and dancing tonight?" Penelope laughed, hugged him, and even though they were in public, he actually hugged her back - something that almost never happened.

"I think that's a brilliant idea, Percy," she told him. "Thank-you."

Draco Malfoy was already missing his son. He wouldn't admit it to anyone, of course. Not to his wife, and certainly not his parents. When he looked over and saw Harry, Ginny, Ron, and Hermione looking - staring - at him, he'd nodded and turned away. He hadn't seen them in person in years, and he'd have no problem if it was years more before he saw them again.

He didn't have any animosity toward them, but seeing them reminded him of what the terrible choices his parents had made had cost him, and would probably cost his son too. His once-proud family's name was disgraced, and they'd been stripped of their seat on the Wizengamot and any power they'd once had in the Wizarding World.

His father blamed Dumbledore, Harry, the Order of the Phoenix, and anyone else he felt was at fault, but Draco knew where the blame lay - squarely with his father and the other foolish, arrogant Wizards and Witches who had followed a twisted, powerful Dark Wizard who told them what they wanted to hear, and had been none of the things he had professed to stand up for - not even a pureblood!

Now his father sat around with the few old cronies that weren't still in Azkaban, talking about the good ole days, which Draco just found absurd. His parents continued to live like the royalty of the Wizarding World that they still believed they were, and at the rate their family fortune was being spent, his children, or maybe his grandchildren might have to actually work when they grew up. He looked at his son, who was nervous, and rather grim looking.

"You take care of yourself, and study hard," he told the boy. His son gave his mother a perfunctory hug, shook his hand formally, and then got on the train.

This was his first time going away from home, and that seemed strange, but it was not his first time away from his parents, who were often away from home on trips that rarely included taking their son with them. He was excited, and a little scared about finally going to Hogwarts, but except for anger and hate, he'd rarely seen anyone in his family ever show much emotion, and weakness like fear or pain was certainly discouraged in the strongest manner, so he kept his feelings to himself, and boarded the train. He knew that his father and grandparents hoped he'd be sorted into Slytherin, since it was a family tradition, but he secretly hoped for another House - maybe Ravenclaw or Gryffindor. He'd know by the end of the day.

Draco and his wife left the platform after their son was gone from view. They didn't hold hands, or comfort each other in any way. If they were both honest, they'd admit that they didn't really care for each other at all. Even though she was plain looking and not very bright, in his opinion, he'd married her because she was from a pureblood family and his options had been limited.

She'd married him because even though his family name was disgraced after the war, they did have money, and her family didn't, and she had been sure that she would prefer living in a mansion to the poverty she'd known growing up. He'd found out that except for the son they'd had together to keep his father happy, that being a bachelor would have been better than a life with the Witch he'd married, and she found out too late that money doesn't buy happiness.

As they left the platform, Draco saw Harry and Ginny again. Their backs were to him, so they didn't see him looking at them again, and he fought to control a brief flash of jealousy for the couple that were so obviously in love and happy. Harry might have two seats on the Wizengamot - one that his mother still thought should be his, but the rumour among the few families that would still talk to his, was that Harry had pretty much given away the Black family fortune to support the Weasley family and his friends.

They said that the little Cottage they lived in near Godric's Hollow was all he had left, and that she supported them working as a research assistant or something - probably working for that brainiac, Ms Order of Merlin First Class, Hermione. He didn't know how true any of those, or the dozens of other rumours were, but Ginny looked like a million galleons, and he had to admit that Harry looked ten years younger than he himself did, and felt another flash of that jealousy.

When they used the TransPortal to go back to the Malfoy estate, he would have been shocked to find out that he'd just added to Harry and Ginny's fortune - just like he and his family had done hundreds of other times for years without having the slightest idea that they were doing it.

The train was gone, and platform nine and three-quarters would stand empty until the Hogwarts Express returned the young Witches and Wizards for the Christmas holiday. This story, like a trip on the Hogwarts Express - has come to it's destination, but fortunately, another trip is always waiting just an imagination away!