Promises & Reunions

Neville came out of the Floo at the House of Black. Coughing a bit, he straightened up and headed to the stairs; he’d volunteered to collect Harry and Ginny for their party.
As he reached the stairs, the door to the basement swung open and Pansy stepped out. “Longbottom,” she said shortly, closing the door behind her. “Where the hell is everyone? I’ve never seen this place so empty.”

“Er, everyone’s at Fred and George’s shop, Pansy,” Neville said as Pansy walked over to him. “They’re-”

“Never mind,” Pansy interrupted. “They’re all away?” Neville nodded. “Good.” She shoved Neville up against the wall and planted a kiss on his lips, both her hands coming together to grip his groin.

Neville grasped both of Pansy’s shoulders and pushed her away. “Not now, Pansy!” he squeaked, extricating himself from Pansy’s hands.

“Why the hell not, Longbottom?” Pansy snapped. “Afraid it’ll lose the magic?”

“Pansy, I’m just here to get Harry and Ginny and take them back to the shop.”

“Hmm. So the Weasleyette’s back. Why is everyone at the shop?”

“Umm, maybe Harry should tell you.”

Pansy threw up her arms in exasperation. “Fine!” She sat abruptly on a bench at the table. “Well?” she said after a moment. “Aren’t you going to bring them down?”

Neville shook his head as he climbed the stairs. He’d been having more and more trouble ducking Pansy’s advances. Her sexual talents aside, Neville didn’t really like the idea of being a convenience; he’d been considering asking Susan if she’d be willing to “date” him so he’d appear taken, but he thought it was wrong to ask such a thing of his friend. Besides, he wasn’t entirely sure it would deter Pansy at all.

When he reached Harry and Ginny’s door he knocked lightly, blushing slightly when he realized he might be interrupting something. But the door was promptly opened by Harry, who grinned. “All through?”

“Uh huh. Better be ready, I think Fred and George are planning to set off some of those fireworks.”

Harry groaned as Ginny came up behind him, chuckling. “Maybe we should change into some clothes we don’t mind getting charred by cinders.”

“Harry, Pansy’s downstairs,” Neville said. “She wanted to know why everyone’s at the shop together. I, er, wasn’t sure I should tell her…”

Harry sighed. “She’s a member of the Army, Neville, it’s okay. Let’s tell her before we go over.”

When Harry, Ginny and Neville walked into the kitchen, Pansy raised her eyebrows. “Well? What’s going on? Or am I too much of a liability to know?”

“No, we’ll tell you, but you have to keep quiet about it, all right?” Ginny said.

“I have to, thanks to the Charm you put on me, don’t I?”

“It’s not Army business, Pansy,” Harry said. “We’d just rather keep it a secret for now.” He and Ginny exchanged a glance, and then wordlessly raised their hands to display their rings.

Pansy stared for a second, and then burst out laughing. She laughed so hard she cried. “Oh- Merlin!” she gasped out. “I don’t know if I should keep laughing, or be terrified I’m taking orders from a madman!”

“I’ll take that as a ‘congratulations’,” Ginny said wryly. “Are you coming to the party?”

“Party?” Pansy glanced at Neville. “Is that what’s happening at the shop?” Neville nodded. “Well, I’m certain you wouldn’t want a Slytherin spoiling the fun.”

“Pansy, you’re a member of the Army,” Harry said. “I’d like you to come.”

“Me too,” Ginny added. “And it’s our bloody party.”

Pansy scrutinized Harry and Ginny as though she was sure they were taking the mickey. “Someone has to make sure the Revitalizing Draught is ready for the Last Rites we’re getting today,” she said finally. “That’s the only reason I’m here – figured Granger wouldn’t remember.”

“Bloody hell, I forgot completely too!” Harry said.

“Don’t worry, Harry, we’re all ready for it,” Neville assured him. “The Last Rites plant will be here at three, and Dobby and Winky are going to help me get it to its place in the greenhouse; the space is all prepared.”

“Thanks, Neville, you’re amazing.” Harry turned back to Pansy. “If you can get away from the potion, come over to the party.”

“You really want me to come?” Pansy asked in shock as Harry, Ginny and Neville headed for the fireplace.

“Of course,” Ginny said with a grin. “We need someone to take Fred and George down a bit. You’re even better at it than Sally-Ann.”

Pansy couldn’t keep a slight smirk off her face as Harry and Ginny Flooed out. Neville glanced back before he left; Pansy licked her lips at him suggestively, and Neville flushed as he disappeared.

Neville caught Harry and Ginny in a compromising position when he came out of the Floo; Ginny had shoved Harry up against the door and was snogging him senseless. They both started and blushed when Neville appeared. “Er, sorry Neville,” Harry mumbled.

“Forget it; it’s no worse than George and Luna. Or Fred and Angelina. Actually, it’s not anywhere near as bad.”

Laughing, the three of them headed for the shop. As soon as they stepped through there was a huge cheer, and sure enough Fred and George set off fireworks from opposite ends of the store, providing brief illumination. Harry and Ginny stared around, utterly amazed at what their friends had done. All the windows had been covered to block the light, and the room had been enlarged and transformed into a dance hall. There was a large, polished wood floor in the center, with tables set up along three of its sides. The fourth side had a long table upon which an unbelievable buffet had been set up. Once the fireworks died out the room was sparsely lit to create a soft, cozy mood. Slow dance music was playing softly in the background.

Almost the entire Army was there; Hermione, Neville, Fred and George, Luna, Angelina, Alicia, Katie, Susan, Cho, Sally-Ann, Padma and Parvati, Lavender, Lee, Dean…the only members not present were Tonks, Justin (who still hadn’t convinced his parents that Hogwarts wasn’t reopening), and Ernie, who was still doing what he could to get the inside track with the wealthy pureblood families.

Harry and Ginny were dragged to a table and had a mountain of food placed in front of them. Everyone sat close together and started chattering away, but Neville surprised everyone by standing and raising his glass. He blushed when silence fell and everyone’s eyes were on him. “There’s a tradition in my family,” he said shyly, “that a Longbottom has to make the first toast when someone they know gets married. There’s even a traditional toast.” He grinned nervously, and cleared his throat. “Harry, Ginny,” he intoned seriously, raising his glass, “you’ve been great friends to me; you’ve been great friends to those you know; and you’ve been great friends to each other. Now you’ve found love, and your spirits are soaring. May your hearts always carry the warmth you feel now, and may your kindness continue to warm the hearts of those who love you.”

Everyone stared amazedly at Neville. He blushed, and sat down quickly. “I couldn’t be that eloquent if I tried,” George said with an impressed look. He leaned over and clinked his glass against Neville’s. “Cheers, Neville.”

Ginny kissed Neville on the cheek; “Thank you, Neville,” she whispered.

“Come on, Harry- speech!” Dean shouted.

With great reluctance, Harry was dragged to his feet by the catcalls of the group. “Make it good and mushy, Potter!” Katie yelled, and everyone howled with laughter as Ginny and Harry both went very red.

“All right, all right!” Harry called, and the babble died away, except for an occasional snicker. Harry turned to look at Ginny, and felt his mouth go dry. How to say what he felt about this incredible, terrifying young woman? Probably best to keep it simple…

“I love you, Ginny,” Harry said. “That’s all there is to it. I haven’t had a lot of experience with love in my life, but that doesn’t mean I don’t know what it is. I think I’ve loved a total of seven people in my life. The first were my parents. I may not remember them clearly, but I can remember what it felt like to be with them, and there was a great deal of love there for me.”

“The next – the first one I met – was Hagrid.” He smiled at some murmurs that met that statement. “I know some of you don’t really care for Hagrid, but he’s a special man. What he did for me…he showed up out of the blue, took me away from hell and gave me something I didn’t think I’d ever have – a future. And he’s been a great friend and a constant reassurance of that future ever since.”

“The fourth-” Harry’s voice caught, and he fought back a surge of furious tears. “The fourth…was Ron. He was the first real friend I had, that didn’t run away after being threatened by my cousin Dudley. He was exactly what I needed when I got to the Wizarding World – a confirmation that I wasn’t a freak like I’d been told my whole life, that I could have friends, get into trouble, live a life and be accepted. Ron’s absence now is the worst thing I’ve ever had to go through. He welcomed me into his life like a brother – as if he didn’t have enough already – and there is no way I could possibly repay him for choosing to sit with me on the train to Hogwarts that day.”

“The fifth – by only a half hour – was Hermione.” Harry turned to look at Hermione, who flushed and ducked her head. “Throughout everything she’s had to endure because of me – heartache, ostracism, misery and scorn, and I don’t know how many near-death experiences – Hermione has stood by me, even when I didn’t deserve it. She’s been a rock of certainty for me in an unfamiliar and often terrifying world. I haven’t really said so before, so Hermione…thanks.”

Hermione mumbled something. “What?” Harry asked.

“I said, nine times,” Hermione answered with an embarrassed smile. “Nine near-death experiences.”

There was some chuckling, and Harry grinned. “Nine, then. And you still hang around me. You must either be nutters, or a true friend. I think you’re the latter. And the former,” he added, and ducked when Hermione threw a napkin at him.

“The sixth person…was Sirius.” He sighed sadly at the confused or startled looks. “Sirius Black, my Godfather. For months I wanted him dead, I wanted to kill him myself, because I believed he’d betrayed my parents to Voldemort. I found out it wasn’t true, that Sirius had been the best friend my father could have asked for. Over the next two years, despite being on the run from the Ministry, Sirius still advised me, consoled me and watched over me. A year ago I made a horrible mistake, and it c- it cost Sirius his life.” Harry wiped at his eyes. “If I’d stopped and thought for a moment, it wouldn’t have happened.” Ginny reached out and squeezed Harry’s hand, and he smiled and squeezed back before continuing. “Sirius was a great man; someday, I’m going to make sure the entire Wizarding World knows it.”

“And the seventh person is Ginny.” Harry met Ginny’s eyes and held them with his own. “I met you before Sirius…actually before Hermione too, if count standing on the train platform. I even know exactly when I fell in love with you; it was back in the Chamber of Secrets. When Tom Riddle was gone, and you woke up and looked at me, and started crying…I wanted to hug you, comfort you, and even then I wanted to kiss you.” He blushed. “I know we were only twelve and eleven, but I still wanted to. And then I got to watch you over the next four years, as you changed and grew until you became what you are now; a strong, smart and beautiful woman. But you had me completely hooked, even back then. More than ever now, I’m grateful to Hagrid for bringing me a new future… because that future has you in it.”

Ginny’s eyes were filled with tears. After a long silence, Harry said “Er, Ginny, I think it’s your turn.”

“The hell with that,” Ginny said thickly. “Here’s my speech.” And she grabbed the front of Harry’s shirt, dragged him down and kissed him deeply. There were hoots, hollers and cheers mixed in with Fred and George’s cries of dismay.

“Okay, time for dancing!” Fred exclaimed loudly. He leapt to his feet and tried to pull Angelina up, but she resisted. “C’mon, Angie!”

“No Fred, not until Harry and Ginny dance,” Angelina said with a slight smirk.

“What?” a startled Harry said, dragging himself from Ginny. “No, I don’t dance.”

“You did at the Yule Ball,” Katie pointed out.

“Yeah, but I don’t know how!”

“I’ll second that,” Parvati said with a giggle, and Harry flushed.

“That’s okay, Harry,” Ginny said, standing. “All the Weasleys know how to dance. Come on.”

“But- but-”

“You don’t have a choice, Harry,” Hermione said, obviously trying not to laugh. “Tradition demands that the married couple dance first.”

“Come on,” Ginny chuckled, dragging Harry to his feet and onto the dance floor. Harry remembered what to do with his hands, at least. One went to Ginny’s hip, and one took her free hand. “Just follow my lead,” Ginny said, and they began to spin slowly; Harry, ignoring Fred and George’s catcalls, had to admit dancing was a lot more fun with someone he was in love with. In no time Ginny had leaned forward to rest her head on Harry’s chest, pulling him closer.

After a bit Fred got Angelina onto the dance floor, and that was a cue for others to start dancing as well. Fred’s and George’s dancing was very exuberant, but they clearly knew what they were doing; so did Parvati, Padma and Lavender, although Parvati seemed downright afraid when dancing with Lee.

Neville was dancing with Susan when he happened to glance over her shoulder. “Er, Susan, can we stop for a bit?” he said, gesturing with his chin.

Susan followed his gaze and smiled sadly. “Of course,” she said, squeezing his hand before heading off to the buffet.

Neville walked off the dance floor and over to Hermione, who was sitting by herself. She smiled slightly as Neville approached. “Hermione,” Neville said, offering his hand, “would you like to dance?”

Hermione stared in surprise. “Oh, Neville, thank you, but I just- I don’t think-”

“I’m a lot better than I was at the Yule Ball,” Neville insisted with a bit of a flush. “I promise if I step on your feet too much we can stop.”

Hermione chuckled weakly, and smiled at Neville. “All right,” she said, and took Neville’s hand.

Harry grinned over Ginny’s head as Neville and Hermione began dancing. “Good idea, Neville,” he murmured.

“What?” Ginny spun Harry so she could see, and smiled. “I hope Hermione doesn’t mind a few bruises. From what I remember, Neville’s a bit awkward.”

“Who cares? He’s distracting Hermione, and that’s good.” Ginny nodded and leaned into Harry again with a sigh. “Happy, Ginn?”

“Hell yes.” Ginny replied. “It’s like one of my dreams.”

“You dreamed about us dancing?”

“Daydreamed, yeah. And it’s more that we’re married.” She leaned back and looked up at Harry. “Married. It still seems unreal, you know? Like it couldn’t really have happened.”

“I know,” Harry agreed. “It’ll take some getting used to, having a wife.”

Having a wife… Ginny smiled hugely and pulled Harry down to kiss her. As with every time their lips met, she felt a charge of adrenaline, and a fire shooting through her gut. Anything…anything’s worth it.

“GINNY! What do you think you’re doing?”

Harry and Ginny wrenched apart. Everyone in the room had stopped what they were doing and were staring in shock. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were standing in the doorway.