Chapter 9
Chapter IX
"Why did they have to schedule me being at the damned trial for today, of all days?" Harry grumbled.
"Ignoring the fact that it's my birthday – actually, let's not. Somehow, the Dursleys have once again managed to …"
He stopped and took a deep breath. "No. It solves nothing. I'm free of them, and even if the wards were still up, I'd
tell Dumbledore that I'm never going back to them."
Minerva McGonagall replied sadly, "Were it not for the testimony I heard today, I would … I can not believe
that people can be so …." She was at a loss for words for the first time that Harry could easily remember.
"Grindelwald. Voldemort. Hitler. Stalin. Vernon is nothing compared to them." He paused for a moment.
"Y'know, I'm surprised that Fudge didn't send a stooge over to watch out for a slip of the tongue, to give him an
excuse to snap my wand."
"That's my job," Hermione blurted, and then turned a shade that Harry was starting to think of as 'Weasley
red'. "Umm …."
Minerva was trying very hard not to laugh, but was unable to keep the smile off her face, no matter how hard
she tried. Harry actually cracked a smile for the first time in a few hours. "Umm, yourself," he chuckled. "Thinking
of having it bronzed, while we're at it?" He shuddered. "If so, make sure it's been detached before being dipped in
molten bronze, please."
Helen snickered in the front seat. "Ignoring comments about bronzing body parts, are you two looking forward
to the handfasting tonight?"
Harry watched Hermione's eyes flicker to Professor McGonagall before she said with a twinkle in those eyes,
"Actually, I was looking forward to the consummation after."
Both students were surprised by McGonagall's delighted laughter. "I remember feeling exactly the same way
when my husband and I went to Gretna in front of our friends. We clasped hands over the blacksmith's anvil and said
our vows, then exchanged rings. Our friends didn't see us for another two days." She looked to her favourite student.
"Remind me to give you a few suggestions before the handfasting, Hermione." When she saw Harry's jaw drop, she
added with a smile, "I am only in my seventies, Harry. I've got many a year left ahead of me."
Harry took a long look at his Transfiguration teacher, and the years seemed to strip away from her for just a
moment. "You were a beautiful young woman, Professor, if what I saw was what you were then."
"Not attracted to someone who could be your grandmother?" McGonagall smiled.
"Not when I have the most beautiful witch I've ever known in my arms," he replied with a smile, hugging
Hermione.
"Excellent answer," both witches replied in unison, and then laughed. "You'll do well, Harry. Most people
your age I would argue against marriage for any reason, but I think most of my misgivings about your wedding can be
narrowed to your seeming too young for marriage. While I think you could both stand more maturity, I think you are
entering this union with the proper solemnity." She paused before adding, "Besides, my husband and I were some of
the last ones to take advantage of the marriage laws in Scotland being what they were until 1940. Now there's all that
paperwork that you need to go through."
"I may be a poor student," Harry replied, "but even I know that marriage isn't something you jump into 'just
because'." He frowned. "Not to speak ill of a friend, but Ron isn't ready yet. To be honest, I don't think I'm really
ready yet. But to keep some semblance of wards around me, we have to do this handfasting."
"I don't think anyone is ever really ready, Harry," said Doug Granger.
"Oh, that reminds me," Helen said. "We'll need info from Hogwarts in order to get the paperwork in for the
September wedding. Civil or religious wedding; who happens to be accredited as a Registrar at Hogwarts; that sort of
thing. We need the paperwork in by September fourth at the absolute latest, but at least four weeks earlier is better.
They'll check things out, make sure these two can legally get married, and then on the nineteenth, they marry."
The vehicle pulled into the garage, while the Ministry car pulled up along the curbside. The others climbed out,
but Harry was still seated in the van, thinking. Hermione climbed back in and sat down beside him. "Harry? What's
wrong?"
"September. Getting married. You won't deny that you're doing it as a protection for me, right? No matter
how much you love me? Part of it is to keep me safe, right?"
"Yes. You mean everything to me, Harry. If we have to get married earlier than I'd originally hoped … well,
to be honest, planned, then we do it."
"So you give up the white gown, and the flowers, and the big hall, and everything, just to stand wherever we do
this at Hogwarts, or in Hogsmeade? You give up a dream of yours, just to keep me safe?"
"I wouldn't call it giving up a dream …" she started to say.
"What would you call it? You wanted your wedding to be perfect – hell, even when I thought that it would be
someone else getting that lucky, I was willing to empty my personal Gringott's vault to pay for your wedding, as my
gift to you." He deflated. "The Dursleys were right. All I can do is destroy lives. My parents died because I exist.
The Dursleys could quite possibly have been quite happy, but I was forced to live with them, and that changed their
entire lives – I destroyed whatever plans that they might have had."
He inhaled and spoke quickly before anyone could interrupt him. "My 'love of adventure' at Hogwarts put me
in a position to almost kill my best friends multiple times – I haven't forgotten how Ron was willing to sacrifice his
life in our first year, just so I could get to the Stone! You were petrified by a basilisk because you were helping me!
You almost died last year, because I wouldn't listen to you, and Sirius did die because of me! Cedric died because of
some stupid, misguided sense of honour that I've got – the Diggorys lost their only son, because I'm even alive!"
"And now I ruin your dream of your perfect wedding. We do a furtive handfasting here at your parents yard,
and then we get married on your birthday. While we're still in school. And whether you admit it or not, this changes
plans for what to do after we leave Hogwarts."
"And it's all because you got involved with Harry Bloody Potter, the Boy-Too-Stupid-To-Die-When-AK'd."
He put his hand to his eyes and rubbed them. "I'm not going to cry, don't worry about that. I've had enough weakness
of that sort for the past month. But unless this handfasting doesn't cement the protections, I'm calling off the
September wedding, Hermione. I've almost killed you, I've gotten you marked for death by a dark wizard and his
followers, and I've insulted you over the years. I'll be damned if I'm going to destroy one of your dreams as well.
You'll have the wedding you want, not the wedding that keeps me safe."
He kept his hands over his eyes, heels pressed into them as he sat, and eventually he heard Hermione leave the
vehicle and enter the house. He heard footsteps he judged to be male come to the vehicle. "Chum? Let's go into the
back yard and talk for a while. I think you need it."
Harry climbed out of the vehicle and followed Ron out the back door of the garage into the lawn. They walked
quite a ways away from the house before Ron stopped him and said, "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't knock
your head off your shoulders. You're getting handfasted today, and you tell her you're calling off your September
wedding? Are you trying to hurt her?"
"Maybe she'll come to her bloody senses and realize that I'm the worst thing for her, dammit!" Harry shouted.
"I've gotten her almost killed, Ron! Twice! How do you think that makes me feel? I love her so much it hurts, Ron.
It hurts knowing that all she's going to get being married to me is a one-way ticket to an early grave! It's bad enough
that you're marked for death as my best friend, but her? The second we get married, especially if we do it at school,
every Death Nibbler in school is going to go running to their Death Eater parent and talk about the wedding. Fast track
right to the top of the 'kidnap and torture' list!"
He began to pace back and forth in front of his red-headed friend. "And for what? For being married to
someone who has gotten two people killed, couldn't stop the Death Eaters from bringing Voldemort back, and has
required outside help to survive the other three times that he faced the bastard! Oh, and you haven't heard that damned
prophecy yet! Dumbledore was the one who it was told to, so he knew what it said." He quoted it to Ron. "So it's
him or me! No two ways about it. He's got easily thirty years of Dark Magic study behind him. Does anyone really
think that I stand a chance to survive against him? No matter how much I want to survive and have a happy life with
Hermione, I have to face the fact that I am a dead man walking. Talk about a 'power that he knows not' – ha! A room
filled with whatever it is? The hints that Dumbledore gave about that power come out to being ridiculous. A room
filled with love? How in hell do you quantify that, box it and shelve it?"
He stopped and faced his best friend. "I love her more than I love my own life. How can I let her walk into
what is basically a death trap for her?"
Ron looked at his friend for a long moment. "How can you take the decision away from her if you love her as
much as you say you do? When does she get a say in the matter? Right now, the three of us are as close to adult as
we may ever get. The Department of Mysteries fiasco taught us all how dangerous this thing really is, I think. I could
die tomorrow at the hands of the Death Eaters. Guess what, Harry? I still intend to stand behind you in this fight,
knowing that it may well kill me. V … Vol … dammit, I'm going to say the name … V-Voldemort is evil, and needs
to be destroyed. If my death helps that happen, then my death will have been worth it."
"Ask her, Harry. Ask her if she's thought through what this means. Ask the woman who researches everything
what it might mean to her to be married to the person Vol-Voldemort most wants dead. I guarantee you she's thought
about it, and is walking into it with eyes wide open." He grabbed his friend's shoulder. "I am so damned jealous of
you, Harry. I'd love to have her love me with the depth … the purity that she loves you. Maybe I'll find that
someday. But damn it, if you don't go back in there and talk to her, and call the September wedding back on, I may
beat the hell out of you."
---
Hermione watched the two of her friends out in the lawn, trying hard not to cry. She understood Harry's mood,
but it didn't make the pain any less. She watched as Harry began to pace, hands waving as he talked. He was
obviously talking loudly, because she could almost hear his voice. She watched him stop speaking as he faced Ron.
She found herself wondering what Ron was thinking, and then saw him speak. His words seemed like physical
blows to Harry. Ron pointed at the house and she watched Harry's eyes follow and meet hers. Ron said something to
Harry, and Harry stood straighter. As he began to walk back to the house, they were surprised by Albus Dumbledore
appearing in the yard. Harry nodded at him and stopped long enough to say something, then continued his journey to
the house. She opened the door to meet him.
"Harry …"
"Hermione, what kind of situation are you getting into if you marry me?"
"I'm already on the list of people to kidnap, torture and kill excruciatingly. That moves me to the top of the
list. But you know something, Harry? If it keeps you alive long enough to kill Voldemort, then it's worth it. I am in
extreme danger being your friend. If I were smarter than I am brave, then I'd back off, but you mean too much to me.
Harry James Potter, I love you, and I love you knowing that it could lead to my death. My parents are right, as usual.
This is a war, and you choose sides. If I am going to die in the fight against the Dark, I want it to be at the side of my
husband." She crossed her arms. "Does that answer your question?"
"Yes," he said in a somewhat small voice. Dropping to one knee, he took her hands. "A few minutes ago, I
said something foolish and called off our September wedding. Will you do me the honour of forgiving me and agree
to marry me on your seventeenth birthday? I do love you, Hermione – that was part of why I did that. But I took the
choice away from you, and that was wrong of me."
She pulled him to his feet. "Yes, Harry, I forgive you. Besides, we already started the paperwork. It's too late
now to back out," she laughed. She stopped laughing as he leaned in to kiss her, and while a chaste kiss, it was
certainly full of the extreme depths of passionate love that he felt for her. She was extremely glad that they'd both
learned that, if you position yourself right, you can breathe through your nose while you kiss. It took Helen Granger
tapping their shoulders to get that kiss to stop.
Hermione got her bearings about her and then looked at Professor Dumbledore. "Did the wards drop, sir? You
popped into our back yard as if nothing was preventing you."
"Portkeys are like that, dear girl. As for the wards, well, your anti-Apparition wards are down to about one
hundred yards. I expect that they will fluctuate for some time." His eyes twinkled madly. "I suspect that they shall
increase dramatically sometime tonight, after the handfasting has taken place. Eventually they will go away
completely, but I expect not until Voldemort has been defeated. So, is everything ready for the ceremony tonight?"
Harry thought for a moment, and then looked to the Grangers. "I can't think of anything we've forgotten.
You'll need to go into your room and get the rings, though."
Hermione couldn't help but laugh as Harry's eyes shot wide, and he slapped his forehead. "The rings! We
were so busy with everything else…"
"Then perhaps you should go get them," Dumbledore smiled.
"Can someone get us to Diagon Alley?" he asked. At the look he received, he replied, "You think any normal
ring is going on this woman's finger? I'm getting her rings as magical as she is!"
"You don't have to, Harry," she started to respond.
"If you're going to do something, do it right," he answered simply.
Minerva McGonagall chuckled. "Young man's heart is in the right place, I must admit. Especially after that
scene a few minutes ago. Who shall accompany Harry?"
"Well, Hermione needs to, since I want her to decide what she wants to wear on her finger. Beyond that, well,
that's up to you."
Hermione was actually surprised by her inclusion. "Thank you, Harry."
Dumbledore spoke up. "If you would not mind a trip into Gringott's, there may be a solution. Your parents'
wedding rings."
Harry looked to Hermione. "If you want to see them, Hermione. If you don't like them, then we get our names
in the paper. I'm buying you an engagement ring, however. I haven't done that yet, and I want you to actually have
one before we wed tonight." He paused. "So, Gringott's first. Where are the rings stored?"
"In the Potter vaults," Dumbledore replied. "Shall I come with you? It would perhaps make the process of
giving you full access to them considerably easier, since I am currently guardian of them." He looked to McGonagall,
who reached into her handbag and pulled out a small pot. "As prepared as always, Minerva." He looked to the group
and then walked to the fireplace in the Granger home. "It should be used very seldom. This is currently an
unregistered Floo connection." He tossed some powder into the Granger fireplace and said, "Gringott's bank lobby."
The fire flared and a goblin's face appeared. "Purpose for call?"
"To allow for safe passage for a customer who needs privacy – Harry Potter."
"In thirty seconds, Floo to 'Kazar's Office'." The connection was abruptly broken.
---
Fifty seconds later, all three of them were standing in a goblin's office. "Mister Dumbledore," said the goblin.
"Is it correct to assume that this is in regards to the conversation we had of last week?"
"Yes, it is. I will be transferring guardianship of the Potter vaults to their proper owner, since he is now
considered an adult."
"He is but sixteen," the goblin stated.
"He is what the Muggles refer to as an emancipated minor, which makes him adult in their eyes, except for
certain small things that I believe he has stated no real interest in, such as tobacco and alcohol." Harry nodded his
agreement.
In a few minutes, Harry was the proud and more than slightly nervous owner of a new Gringott's key. A few
minutes after that, Griphook, Harry, Hermione, and Dumbledore were standing before the Potter family vault. Albus
smiled and said, "You will find this vault overwhelming, perhaps, given your thoughts on the contents of the vault you
are used to visiting. This contains many things of a magical nature that your father did not wish to lose when he and
your mother moved to Godric's Hollow. When they died, I became caretaker of their wedding rings, and had them
brought here." The vault opened to display an astonishing pile of money within. There were also various boxes and
chests in the room, and atop one small table was a simple jewellery box. Harry walked over to it and opened it,
finding a number of interesting pieces of jewellery in it, but segregated from the rest were three rings and a necklace.
Two of the rings were simple in design – a band of gold rose leaves, tips overlapping stems, with a circlet of white
gold on either side of the leaf band. The third ring contained diamond and emerald chips on a simple white gold band.
"Oh, they're exquisite!" Hermione breathed. She picked up the wedding bands and looked inside them to the
inscriptions inside. "Ooh, runes!"
"What do they say?" Harry asked.
"Hmm," she said slowly, eyes twinkling, "Let's see … 'One ring to rule them all …'"
"Hermione!" Harry laughed. "What does it really say?"
She was laughing. "I'm sorry Harry, but we both needed the laugh. It really says 'Two hearts, one soul.' Does
that make you happier?"
"Much. Question is, do we use them today, or on your birthday?" He paused and dropped to one knee. "The
more important question, though, is this: I never actually officially asked for you hand in marriage. We sort of
decided that we would get married. Well, I'm making it official." He held out the diamond and emerald ring.
"Hermione Granger, will you consent to save the soul of this poor misguided fool, and marry me?"
Her eyes teared quickly, and she slid her finger forward, through the band. "Yes, my poor benighted Harry. I
will be your light, if you wish it, and in return, you will be mine." Her couldn't hold back the laugh that came upon
her when she saw Harry's evident relief. "Thought I might pull out at this late date, Harry? We're getting married
tonight!"
"It was your last chance to …"
"If you finish that the way I think you were going to, then we'll be consummating the handfasting on a
different schedule after you recuperate from your injuries, my soon-to-be husband." She said it with a smile on her
face and in her eyes, but with steel in her voice.
He nodded. "So saying '… come to your senses' would have been considered a particularly bad way to finish
that sentence?"
She hugged him tightly. "Yes. Aren't you glad you didn't finish it that way?"
He smiled and looked at the necklace. When he picked it up, he gasped. "Professor? Was my mother a Seer
or something of the sort?"
"Yes, she had talents in that direction. Why?"
"Hermione, what are the dates listed on the back of this pendant?" It was a large locket style pendant hanging
from a gold chain; a simple circle about two inches across.
She took it and her eyes widened. "Today, and my birthday this year! There's a few more obscured by
magic." She opened the locket and was surprised to see an image hover in the air above the open locket. It was
obviously a drawing, but it was the two of them in an embrace filled with love. They were dressed in that which they
had been born in, but the work showed nothing that would embarrass them if it were shown in the common room of
Gryffindor Tower. It was them as they looked today.
"Mum was an artist as well, apparently," Harry said thickly.
"I'm not that pretty, am I?" Hermione asked, looking at the picture with awe.
"I'm going to spend the rest of my life trying to convince you that you are," Harry said, taking her into his
arms. "So, let's head back up topside and get back to your parents house. We have a wedding to attend!"
---
Back at the Granger home, Harry and Hermione were shocked by how quickly the backyard had changed into a
party zone. "I'd ask how you managed this, but the answer is undoubtedly 'magic'," Harry breathed.
"Actually, chum," Ron said from beside him, "it's the result of having the Weasley family and the Grangers
available for all work. Professor McGonagall simply added the occasional touch. Almost everything done here was
done in the half hour you were gone, by hand."
Harry looked to Hermione. "I want to be the kind of parent to the children we'll someday have that your
parents are to you. This is incredible."
Helen came from behind Harry and hugged him. "Harry, we did this for you too. Our daughter considers you
good enough; therefore, you are. Someday you'll realize that we love you for you, as well as for how you make our
daughter feel." She let go of him and swatted his rear end. "Now go get dressed. You're one of the guests of honour
at a wedding!"
Before he disappeared, he handed the rings to Helen. "Find out from her if she wants to use them today, or
wait until September. I'm good on her decision either way."
A few minutes later he was standing on the Granger lawn under an awning, waiting for Hermione to appear.
Ron stood next to him, and it was anyone's guess as to which of the two young men was more nervous. Harry looked
out into the crowd, and found himself worrying – Fred and George were uncharacteristically solemn.
All that was forgotten, though, the moment that Hermione stepped into view. She was wearing a simple white
sundress that somehow simultaneously made Harry think of the eleven year old girl he'd met on the Hogwarts Express,
and of a fully mature woman in a full bridal gown. She was wearing a crown of roses in her hair, and a veil fell
demurely to her throat. The cut of the dress tried to draw his eyes lower, but he stubbornly stared at the veil. He could
see her smiling behind it, and his heart beat faster. Soon, she'll be my wife! I get to spend the rest of my life with her!
A grin split his face.
He couldn't say what the music was that was playing in the background; only that it was perfect. Correct that –
she's perfect. That makes everything else perfect, even if it starts to rain right now. Somehow – it seemed sudden –
she was beside him, and her hand was in his.
Dumbledore cleared his throat. "Friends and loved ones, we are gathered here today to solemnize and make
official that which these two and the Universe know already – that they are one." He smiled. "I have known these two
since their first days at Hogwarts. In the case of Harry, I knew his parents. Today I will admit that I nearly cried with
joy the day I saw Hermione Granger step through the doors at Hogwarts, because Lily Evans, a gifted Seer, had a
sketchbook full of people she had seen in the future, and this brilliant young woman was as prominent in there as were
two particular black haired men. The most striking was the one with the brilliant green eyes, often in the same picture
as this brown haired woman."
"But divination is at best a woolly science," he continued, smiling wider, and three distinct snorts of laughter
could be heard being stifled by the bride, groom, and groomsman. "One worries for the future. I have no such worries
anymore. They have found each other, and today they pledge themselves to something both greater than themselves
and meaningless without them."
They met each others eyes, and mouthed the word that Dumbledore spoke next, in unison with him. "Love."
He turned to Harry. "Harry James Potter, do you pledge to love and honour this woman and keep her safe to the best
of your ability?"
"With all my heart, with all my soul, until the last breath has left my body, and beyond," Harry responded. A
breeze rose under the awning, ruffling the clothes of only Harry and Hermione. She gasped.
Dumbledore turned to Hermione. "Hermione Jane Granger, do you pledge to love and honour this man and
keep him safe to the best of your ability?"
She met Harry's eyes, and his breath caught in his throat as she answer the question. "With all my heart, with
all my soul, until the very end of time itself." The breeze arose again, lifting her veil to him, but this breeze went
through the audience, leaving no one with dry eyes.
Albus spoke again, his own voice thick. "Their own words have sealed this marriage before the Universe. All
that is left for me is to make it official. By the powers vested in my by the International Wizengamot, of which I am
once again Chief Wizard, I pronounce you what we already know you to be – husband and wife." He smiled widely.
"You may kiss, if you choose."
Hermione pulled Harry close and kissed him, and he suddenly realized that this was going to be an interesting
party for him. He wanted nothing more than to consummate this union, especially when he realized that the only thing
under Hermione's wedding dress was his wife … My God! My wife! He picked her up and spun her around, their lips
never breaking contact.
---
They came to their senses to loud applause from the assembled small crowd. Hermione leaned over. "Don't
worry, Harry," she murmured. "We decided to use the wedding rings in September. We can wear them now, but it
will cause questions at school."
"Question," he murmured back. "I'd like to scream it from the rooftops, and take out a full page ad in every
newspaper in England, Muggle and wizard, but I'll understand if you choose to hide our marriage until September."
"Are you mad, Mr. Potter?" she asked in a normal voice. "I think you'd waste your money taking out
advertisements in the Muggle papers, and all we have to do for the wizard papers is do exactly what I intend to – insist
that people call me Mrs. Potter." She blushed. "The worst thing is admitting that Rita Skeeter was right."
"I can live with that," Harry said. "After all, I get to live with you." He laughed. "For the rest of my life!" he
shouted to the skies.
"No, chum, tell us what you really feel about this," Ron said with a laugh. The crowd came around them,
congratulating them.
As the twins approached, Harry looked at them sideways. "What are you two planning? You were way too
solemn during the ceremony. Is the cake going to explode?"
"Harry …" Fred said.
"… our brother …" added George.
"You wound us!"
"No, I know you. When you get all innocent, then you've got a big one planned. So what is it? If you ruin my
wedding day – well, remember that I am the son of a Marauder, and the remaining Marauder is a friend of mine." He
grinned at them. "If we are pranked tonight, then I guarantee you that you will regret it."
"Honestly, Harry …" George started.
"… we wouldn't do that on your wedding day. We were more thinking of the fact that, well …"
"… when this gets out, we're going to be sinking the profits from the shop into financing the weddings that the
girls are going to insist upon."
Harry laughed. "Is that all?" He looked them deeply in the eyes. "If you could afford it, would you marry
them?"
"Yeah!" George exclaimed.
"In a heartbeat!" Fred added.
"No problem," Harry said. "You're family to me, and family helps finance these sort of endeavours. Get what
I'm saying?"
The entire Weasley family was staring at him. Hermione simply smiled and said, "I love this man."
The party began in earnest, finally, and the couple danced their first dance together. As their bodies swayed
together, Harry murmured, "If we don't find a way to politely leave this party, Hermione, I don't think there will be any
doubt about whether or not we consummated this marriage." He gently nibbled her ear. "Knowing that the only thing
between my hands and your body is that thin dress is driving my crazy." He pulled back slightly and looked her in the
eyes. "I need you," he said, allowing all the passion and lust he felt right now to come into his eyes.
She gasped, and then smiled. "Well, it may be rude, but there's always being direct." As the dance ended, she
looked to the assembled group. "You can stay and enjoy yourselves," she announced to the group, "but Harry and I
have some business to attend to. I somehow don't think we'll be seeing anyone before tomorrow afternoon at the
earliest." Her eyes twinkled.
As they headed into the house, Harry couldn't help but chuckle as he heard McGonagall, of all people, calling
to Hermione, "Just remember that he needs to be able to form coherent sentences by September first, Mrs. Potter!"
Back to index
Chapter 10 by Kinsfire
Chapter 10
Chapter X
Before they reached the door to Hermione's bedroom, Harry stopped her. As she began to turn toward him,
looking puzzled, he swooped her off her feet. "Tradition demands that I carry my bride across the threshold." He
kissed her rather thoroughly on the lips as she put her arms around his neck. As he set her down, he began to gently
bite his lower lip, because he could see her nipples straining slightly against the cloth. With a slight smile, he tenderly
captured one between his teeth, and began to gently suck, feeling the cloth wetting in his mouth.
"Harry, couldn't you wait?" she moaned quietly.
"Why should I?" he replied, disengaging for a moment, pleased to see that the fabric had gone transparent.
"Gods, one of these days I am getting you outdoors in the rain in that dress."
She giggled. "So, when we eventually go somewhere on our honeymoon, should I enter one of those wet T-
shirt contests?"
"Wouldn't be fair to the other girls," he replied seriously as he captured the other one and repeated the
performance while teasing the first one with his fingers.
When he let go, she looked him in the eyes. "You really do believe that it wouldn't be fair to the other girls,
don't you?"
He looked at her, his hands gently grabbing the material of the dress and pulling up as he spoke. "It wouldn't.
You're the most beautiful girl at Hogwarts, and we have some beautiful girls there." He kept pulling and soon had
pulled it over her head, leaving her in only the shoes that she quickly kicked off her feet. "I don't think putting you up
against other women is fair."
While it sounded like flattery to her, she could see in his eyes that he was stating a simple truth as he saw it.
Her heart came into her eyes and she flowed into his arms. "Oh Harry, I've never felt beautiful before, and then you
say things like that. If I didn't love you before, I'd be falling for you for … oh, Harry, you believe it!"
"And maybe someday you will, too. I wish I could let you see yourself through my eyes. Would you like to
know when I first started having fantasies about you?"
"Why do I think you're going to say the night of the Yule Ball in our fourth year?"
"Because that was it. I looked up the stairs, and there was this … this goddess walking down the stairs."
"Harry …" she said, putting her hands on her waist.
Harry watched rapturously as her breasts bounced slightly. Tearing his eyes back to her own, he replied, "I'm
serious! Why do you think that date with Parvati went so badly? Here I was, staring at my best friend and not
understanding all the different feelings running through me? Jealousy, something I came to discover was love, and
certainly something making my pants fit a bit oddly." He grinned and pointed at his outfit. "See? You still do that to
me!"
"Hmm, what I see is a vast inequity. I'm nude, and you're fully dressed. Rectify this situation immediately,
Mister Potter!"
He snapped to attention, saluting. "Immediately, Mrs. Potter!" he grinned. As he began to take off his jacket,
he said, "Will I ever be able to make you understand just how … how wonderful – how perfect it is to call you that,
and have it be true?"
"Who knows? But you've got easily a hundred years minimum to show me." Her hands came up and started
unbuttoning his shirt. When she was done, her hands slid under the fabric and began to run across his muscled chest.
"Mm, I'm going to enjoy this over those next hundred years." She hummed with pleasure as she felt him shiver under
her fingertips. She slid her hands around to his back and hugged him, her bare breasts against his chest.
He shucked the jacket and shirt onto the floor and reached down to undo his trousers. She beat him there, and
began fumbling with the fastenings. "Aren't I supposed to be the nervous one?" he laughed.
"I think we're both nervous, Harry. This is our first time as a married couple. Even if the law doesn't see us
that way, everyone out there does. And whatever passes for a god out there does too, I suppose."
He gently removed her hands and finished the job of undoing his trousers, but let her pull them off. She flowed
against him again, now that there was only skin, and he could feel her shiver slightly. "Are you scared, honey?"
She looked into his eyes, and the naked hunger there surprised him. "No, Mister Potter. I'm trying to keep
from picking you up and throwing you onto the bed. I want you and I need you, and I'm going to have you." She
blushed furiously. "I wanted to take you out there, I was so worked up."
"Well, that obviously makes two of us then." He swooped her feet off the floor to the sound of a delighted
shriek from Hermione, and carried her to the bed. Her arms came around his neck, and when he set her on the bed,
she refused to let go.
"Harry, make me yours. I think we're both sufficiently aroused right now – I know I'm considering the entire
ceremony foreplay." She shivered in what he assumed was anticipation. "I spent the entire time from Gringott's to
right now with a little part of me thinking about what we're about to do. I'm going to explode like a Christmas
cracker whether you touch me or not."
He grinned widely and lay down beside her, pressing his body against hers. She ground gently against him,
pressing his erection between them. "Keep that up, my wife, and we'll have to wait for a while, since I'll explode at
the wrong time." He looked in her eyes and received the answer to the question he hadn't even asked, so he
repositioned himself. As he placed the tip of his erection against her opening, he laughed. "I feel like a virgin again,
scared that I won't please you – that you won't enjoy yourself."
She surprised him by quickly lifting her legs, locking them behind him, and them grabbing him by the buttocks
and pulling him inside her. He was even more astonished with just how deeply inside her he slid. "Oh God YES!"
she squealed into the air. "I need you, Harry!"
He didn't need any further impetus, and began to gently slide back and forth – maddeningly slowly for her.
"Faster, Harry! Fuck me!" Her sudden usage of language she never used before excited him, knowing that he was the
reason. He sped up, and her moaning sped up and began to get louder. She was no longer making noises that anyone
could mistake for words, but none could mistake the meaning if they heard. Rather quickly, he had driven her over the
edge with his now rapid thrusts, and she in turn pulled him over as she rippled maddeningly against him.
As they lay together in the afterglow, Harry still inside her, she put her arms around him and kissed him rather
thoroughly. "Thank you, Mr. Potter. You have no worries about pleasing me, I can inform you now. And now, by all
mystical means I am aware of, we are truly man and wife."
His eyes shot wide. "You mean …."
She looked at him, rather puzzled, for just a moment, and then realized what he was thinking. "Oh no, Harry.
Not yet. I'm still using contraceptives. I'd like to wait until my seventeenth birthday before I even begin to think
about trying to get pregnant. I'd much prefer to wait until I'm done with at least Hogwarts, if not University, but if I
get told that it will keep you safe, then we start working on it on September nineteenth." He hugged him tightly, even
squeezing him gently with the muscles still surrounding his organ. "I've finally gotten the man of my dreams, so
altering some of my other, more minor dreams is a small price to pay to keep him alive."
He kissed her gently, feeling himself stiffening inside her again. She giggled. "Ooo, I'd ask what you have in
mind, but I think we're of the same mind, my husband." He began to gently stroke in and out, drawing delighted long
moans from the girl beneath him. They became more insistent as the strokes continued, and she began to growl at him
to go faster, but he refused, continuing his long slow rhythmic thrusts. Her moaning came back, and became louder
and far more insistent. "Harry," she groaned as he finished one particularly slow, delicious in-thrust. "I need you
faster. Are you going to make me talk dirty to you again?"
"You can, but I'm keeping it slow, beloved. If you're like this right now, imagine your orgasm," he chuckled
quietly in her ear.
She merely closed her eyes and smiled beatifically at the thought, and continued to moan with each stroke. By
the time she orgasmed again, she was nearly screaming her passion to the skies. Harry spent in her again as she passed
out from the over-stimulation.
---
She awoke to Harry laying beside her, gently running his hand along the skin of her stomach. "You're looking
forward to the day that there's a baby in there, aren't you?"
"Well, I won't deny that someday would be nice, but I was actually just admiring your body." He blushed. "I
won't deny that practising planting a baby is something I've been looking forward to." He looked over to the clock.
"Care to see if anyone is still here at the moment, beloved? I find that exercise makes me hungry and thirsty."
She looked at him for a long moment, and smiled. Some men would say such a thing to swagger and brag that
they had just had sex, but Harry's statement was simple truth – he was hungry for more than simply her body. She got
out of bed, more than a little wobbly, and walked over to her dress. "Harry, my love, I'm going to need to lean on you
for a while, I think. I'm a little weak after what you've done to me."
"What I've done to you?" he laughed. "I seem to recall you being a rather willing participant. But I'll take
full blame if you insist. I request the right, however to claim that I had a certain inspiration," he grinned, wiggling his
eyebrows at her.
"You're not exactly uninspiring yourself, good sir," she laughed in reply as she picked up her dress and slid it
over her body while he slid into trousers and shirt. "I'll prove that to you a little later tonight."
They exited the room and looked out into the garden, which still had quite the party going. As they stepped
into it, the assembled group erupted into applause. Hermione's father stepped forward, shaking his head. "Kids, it's at
a time like this that I recall the words of my sainted grandmother – 'Love may be blind, but the neighbours are rarely
deaf.' Fred, George, Ron, and even Ginny then immediately snapped to attention and saluted Harry, who immediately
turned beet red.
Albus stepped forward. "It might interest you to know that this handfasting removed the restrictions on
underage magic from the both of you," he said, his eyes twinkling madly. "Silencing spells will not cause a sudden
inflow of owls to the property."
"We're not going to live this down, are we?" Hermione asked wearing her own blush, laughing as the
assembled crowd smiled at her and shook their heads 'no' in unison.
Ginny giggled at her for a moment. "The question we're all wondering though, Hermione, is whether he's any
good as a lover? Give us your honest opinion." The wide grin on Hermione's face made her laugh even harder.
Fred looked at the two of them. "Harry, old friend, old chum, I have only one question to ask you, and I really
hope you won't be offended by it. You just got married, and consummated the marriage. What the hell are you doing
out here, rather than taking advantage of your teenage Quidditch star stamina in there with her?!" He grinned. "Hell,
if you're not going to …" He leered at Hermione.
"Sorry, Fred, but Harry and I don't share," she smiled. "Thank you for the compliment, however. Besides, do
you really think that your soon-to-be fiancée would share you?" At the twinkle in both his and George's eyes, she
laughed and amended, "Too much information, thank you very much! And as for what we're doing out here, we
forgot to get any food. We're going to need to keep our strength up in there, after all."
Harry's plate resembled Ron's at Hogwarts when Hermione looked at him next. "Harry!"
"Inspiration, dear, remember?" He wiggled his eyebrows, pulling a blush from her. "I need my strength for
everything we have planned!"
"Harry, we'll have the rest of our lives together to explore and experiment! No need to do it all tonight!"
"But if we have the stamina …" he laughed. "Ooh, chocolate pudding!" His eyes took on a wicked look.
"I'm just going to nick this one bowl …." When she looked at him questioningly, he let the lust burning below the
surface come into his eyes for just a moment, and she gasped.
"Oh my, Harry! Where did this horny beast come from?" she whispered in his ear as she pulled him close.
"He was always there. He just expected to die alone and unloved," he whispered back. "Thank you for proving
him wrong."
"Harry, you've gotten uncharacteristically poetic since we've been together. Why is that?"
"I think it's because … well, maybe it's … y'know, I'm not really sure. It's stuff I'd like to have said to you,
so now I can."
"I think you're also afraid you'll lose me if you stop saying things poetically. I'm not asking you to stop, but
go back to being my Harry, okay? The occasional flowery statement is okay, but too much and it loses its meaning."
She kissed his cheek. "I'm staying, Harry. Don't worry about that."
"I guess I just worry. I've never really had anything good in my life, and now that things are turning around,
I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop. You know – Vernon will get off on his charges and Dudley will come after us,
especially after learning that we've just caused the amount of money coming into the house to drop dramatically. The
Ministry will decide somehow that it's all my fault and come to snap my wand and kick me out into the Muggle world
to live." He looked into her eyes. "I know I'm not supposed to feel this way on this day of all days, but I am so afraid
that I'm going to suddenly wake up in the Dursley house in the second bedroom and discover that this summer has
been a dream, and that you and Ron are dating and serious about each other." He shook his head. "I need cheering
up. Shall we adjourn again?" He forced a grin onto his face.
"Yes, I think we should," she answered, "but first we should actually eat some of this wonderful food prepared
for our wedding." She pointed over to the head of the table. "We have a wedding cake to cut, after all." She turned
to the crowd. "The bouquet will be thrown in September, after that wedding." They walked to the cake and were
handed a knife, and rather deftly cut two slices of cake. Harry picked up one and fed it carefully to Hermione, who ate
it in such a manner that she could tell Harry's trousers were starting to fit him interestingly, as had been her plan. He
retaliated when she fed him his piece by managing to lick frosting off the piece in a manner that made her nipples
tighten until they hurt. His eyes twinkled at her.
"Thank you for not mashing cake in my face, Hermione. I always thought that was so … disrespectful to your
partner."
"I had better things to do with the cake," she purred at him as she ate from the plate she prepared.
"If you keep acting like that, Hermione," he whispered, "don't think I won't make it obvious to everyone that
the marriage has been consummated. I will make love to you in this lawn, in front of these people if you keep teasing
me like this."
Her eyes twinkled, but she toned back the seductiveness of her actions. "Maybe another time, good sir," she
chuckled. They finished their meals in relative peace, carrying on conversations with the guests, and generally
enjoying themselves. Finally, they decided that they were finished, and stood.
"You won't be seeing us again tonight, folks," Hermione said. "I have a husband to make up to for all my
teasing out here, and I have a few interesting ideas on how to do that." Her eyes met Minerva's for just a moment, and
both women's eyes sparkled with amusement.
Harry blinked for a moment. It was obvious from looking at him that he was having trouble wrapping his brain
around the concept of Hermione getting sexual advice from their Transfiguration professor. Hermione smiled and took
his hand, leading him into the house. "See you later, people!" she smiled.
Back in the bedroom, she grabbed her wand and flicked it twice, and they were once again nude. Another and
all external sounds ceased. "Harry, do you trust me?"
"With my body, my heart, and my soul, Hermione," he said seriously.
She chuckled slightly. "Thank you, but a simple yes would have sufficed. Lay down on the bed, on your back,
and raise your arms over your head." He did what she asked, and as his arms went over his head, ropes snaked from
the corners and gently tied his wrists and ankles down.
"Hermione?" he asked in some alarm.
"This is why I asked if you trust me. I know you like to have your hands all over my body, and I'm not
complaining about that. But how will you react to me making love to you, where you can't do anything but move
slightly and lay back and enjoy?" She lay down on the bed atop him. "Harry, you give me great pleasure, and take
great pleasure from doing so. It's my turn to do nothing but make you happy, okay?" She punctuated her words with
a fervent kiss to his lips that she ended with Harry still straining for more. "Exactly, Harry. Delicious torture."
"Just you wait until I get to the chocolate pudding, woman," he growled deep in his throat, grinning as he said
it.
She smiled. "Thanks for reminding me. I promise to leave some for you." As she turned to grab the bowl,
there was a knock at the window, and they both looked to see Hedwig tapping the glass. Hermione stood to open the
window, and came face to face with Ginny, who blushed profusely as she realized what Hermione was wearing.
Hermione dropped the silencing spell to talk to her.
"I was going to grab Hedwig and keep her from interrupting you," she squeaked.
"Thanks, but I think Hedwig has other ideas," Hermione said as the snowy owl gave Ginny a dirty look. "Why
are you blushing? We've shared a room before, Ginny. You've seen me nude."
"Yeah, but I'd never interrupted your … um …."
"We hadn't started yet. I'd just gotten him tied down and was reaching for the chocolate pudding when
Hedwig knocked." Hermione giggled as Ginny's eyes went wide, and she had a feeling that Ginny was going to have
tired fingers that night. Hermione leaned out the window slightly to see no one else around. "Poke your head in the
window, Ginny," she whispered.
Ginny did so, took one look at the bed, and pulled her head out the window again so fast that Hermione felt the
breeze. "My God, he's … it's … oh my God …."
"It's perfect," Hermione whispered. "Happy fantasizing," she said as she pulled her head back in and recast the
Silencio.
Hedwig had hopped her way over to the edge of the bed, and was looking at Harry in a look that made
Hermione think that the owl was amused. "Are you laughing at me, girl?" Harry asked with some embarrassment.
The owl hopped from one foot to the other.
Hermione reached out and gently pet the owl. "Your feathers are so soft, Hedwig." Her eyes sparkled. "I wish
I had a feather duster this soft to torture Harry with. He'd love it."
Hedwig looked at Hermione for a moment and held out her wing. "What is it, girl?" Harry asked. Hedwig
looked at the two of them again and shook the wing lightly. When neither of them responded, she shook harder, and a
single feather detached and began to float to the ground.
Hermione picked it up. "Is this your present to us, Hedwig? Something for me to torture Harry with?" In
answer, the owl gently nipped Hermione's finger and then took to the air, heading back outside. She turned back to
Harry. "Even your owl thinks I should torture you."
With a twinkle in her eye, she reached over and stroked the feather across his chest, taking care to caress his
nipples with it. The shuddering breath he drew made her smile, and the feather lazily trailed down the length of his
body. When she reached his erection, she slid the feather past, and stroked it down his right leg, carefully and gently,
making him moan quietly. The sound became a bit louder when she reversed the trip up his left leg. It was then that
she 'accidentally' let the feather brush against his testicles, and the gasp was all the applause she needed. She touched
him more deliberately with the feather, and began to run the soft owl feather along the length of his erect shaft.
When she noted that he was biting his lower lip and whimpering, she stopped for a moment. "Whimpering,
Harry? Is something wrong?" she asked impishly.
"Do you have any idea what you're doing to me?" he growled as seductively as he could manage. "You're
driving me crazy here!"
She chuckled evilly. "Then you'll have gone completely barking mad by the time I'm done with you, Mister
Potter." She lowered her mouth to his erection and began to gently lick the tip as if it her a lollipop. That didn't last
long, though, as she surrounded him with her mouth and began to slide him into her mouth. As he reached the back of
her throat, she thought, Thank the gods I don't have a strong gag reflex.. She grinned and completely disengaged from
him. "Need to reposition myself to really torture you, Harry." She straddled him, her knees to either side of his chest,
and swallowed him whole. This time she allowed him entry to her throat. His pubic hair tickled against her nose.
Now might be a bad time to sneeze, she thought with amusement. She suddenly felt warm breath tickling her slit, and
moaned slightly. The groan that erupted from him at the noise in her throat gave her an idea. Her right hand moved
back to between her legs and began to gently tease where Harry was so obviously intent on getting access to in some
way. She rested on her left arm while she began to hum Bach's 'Minuet in G major'. She would pull back occasionally
in order to breathe, but she kept humming as she teased both herself and Harry. A chuckle would sneak into her
humming when he would occasionally thrust upward.
Suddenly, she heard him growl, an almost feral sound, and felt him swell very slightly in her mouth. Oh my! I
actually made him … oh gods … I think I'm gonna … Her thought processes stopped as she heard him nearly howl as
he made one final upward thrust, and then she felt his orgasm pulsing down her throat. She tried to continue to hum,
but between her fingers and the elation she felt at having successfully brought him to orgasm with only her mouth, her
own release followed shortly behind his. She pulled back instinctively to breathe and he slipped out from between her
lips, still orgasming. She panted as her own tore through her, and she finally collapsed atop him.
As she came to herself again, she heard Harry asking her to move. "Why?" she panted.
"Because you're just far enough away, and my tongue isn't long enough," he laughed, a sound of humour
mixed with a little desperation. She moved again, drawing further away from his mouth, which drew a groan of
frustration from him. "Please, Hermione? Let me show you how much I appreciated that. Please?" he pleaded.
"Later, my beloved. You spend all your time when we make love making sure I enjoy it. Your pleasure is
secondary. Well, now you get to understand that it's primary to me, Harry. The only reason I haven't fought it more,
other than just how damned good you are, is that I see how happy you are when you give me pleasure. I just want you
to lay there and let me pleasure you, my husband. Make you as happy as you make me." She climbed off him, and
turned around to kiss him. "Do you want to know how happy I am that I manage to make you come with only my
mouth?"
"About as happy as I was our first time to discover that I was able to make you happy with nothing but my
tongue, I'd imagine." He smiled. "Look at what you do to me. I'm already recovering. I want you, Hermione." The
last was said with the beginnings of a growl.
She smiled. "And you'll have me, for all our lives. Right now, though, it's my turn with the chocolate
pudding. I'll leave some for you; don't worry." She carefully spooned pudding onto strategic areas of his body – his
chest, some on his stomach, and a generous dollop on the object of her desire. She then proceeded to run her tongue
down his body, carefully licking the sweet dessert from the areas she had just covered, taken special care to lick and
suck at his nipples. "Just to be sure I got it all," she purred at him after taking a quick break to breathe. His own
breathing was coming rapidly, mixed with moans.
"You're an evil woman, Hermione," he growled. "Where did you learn all this from?"
"Reading," she replied smugly.
"I begin to understand the joys of reading now," he murmured as her tongue slid across his stomach. He
became incoherent, however, when she began working in earnest at getting the pudding removed from his erection.
She licked this time, rather than sucking on his length, and she was rewarded with various twitches and shivers from
him. Finally, gripping the base, she slid her mouth over him again and applied suction as she slid back and forth on
him. He didn't last very long after that, and exploded into her mouth again.
She sat up again, grinning widely. He smiled at her, his emotions in his eyes, and her breath caught, even
through the grin. "That really makes you happy, doesn't it?" he asked. "Knowing that you can do that with your
mouth?"
"Harry, you have no idea. It's not that I can do that specific thing, it's that I'm making you so happy. That you
enjoy me doing it makes me happy." She looked into his eyes. "We really ought to clean up a little, Harry. Care for
our first shower together as husband and wife?"
"You'll have to untie me, you know," he smiled at her.
She flicked her wand, and he was untied. He sat up and took her into his arms, and she was surprised to feel
him shivering. "I'm sorry, Harry!" she said in alarm. "I didn't mean to make you shiver … was I doing something
wrong? You should have told me!" Tears leapt to her eyes.
"Shh," he said, petting her hair. "There's nothing wrong. I'll let you tie me to the bed whenever you want,
Hermione. I just … ever feel an emotion so strongly that you just physically can't let it out, because … well, it's too
big to be released, I guess? That's why I'm shivering, love. If how much I love you were to be released from me all
at once, I'd probably explode. And not just the way you managed with that delectable mouth." He pulled her close
and kissed her hard. She knew he could taste himself on her, and she could tell that he simply didn't care – kissing her
was the most important thing in the world right now.
"Wow," was all she could say when the kiss broke. "I think I understand what Heinlein meant about Mike's
kissing in Stranger in a Strange Land. You do it too. Wow." She shook her head, and then smiled and took his hand
and placed it over her heart. "Feel that pounding? That was from your kiss, lover." She stood. So how about that
shower?"
---
Harry stood, and then surprised Hermione by swooping her off her feet again. "I'll carry you there, love." He
walked toward the bath room that he and Hermione shared. "Hmm, should I keep that room, or should we rearrange
things and turn it into our study and use this as purely our bedroom?"
"Worry later, Harry. I want a nice sexy shower with you." Her arms were around his neck again, and she
nibbled his ear gently.
"I'm discovering that I like this. How about I carry you to all the classes we share?"
"I doubt that's a good idea," she murmured in his ear. "I don't think that the two of us making love in front of
the teachers is a good idea." She giggled. "Well, the making love is. It's the 'in front of the teachers' that would be
bad."
They stood by the shower stall for a moment. "The problem with this is that I have to let go of you. I don't
want to!" He smiled afterwards, and looked over to the tub that was in this room. "Big tub. Looks big enough for
two people."
Her eyes sparkled. "I've had bubble baths in there. Wonderful tub. Bubbles tickling my nipples as I soak. It
is big enough for two, if they're friendly enough," she purred.
"Another thought for another day, my sweet. Let's pin you against the wall of that shower."
"Why Harry! One would almost think all you had on your mind was sex!"
He set her down, and headed into his own room for a moment, coming back with his wand. "Forgot. See, my
mind isn't only on sex – just mostly. Silencio!"
Once the water was running, they stepped into the shower together, and Harry immediately grabbed the soap
and stepped behind her. He quickly built a lather and then began to run his hands along her body. He had her panting
within seconds as he paid special attention to her nipples. As his left hand stayed teasing her nipples, his right slid
down, found her clitoris and began teasing her mercilessly. He loved the way she pressed back against his erection as
she moaned and squirmed beneath his hands. "Oh gods Harry, fuck me! If you love me, fuck me!"
He didn't need to be told twice. His hands came down and gripped her hips, and he pulled her back in order to
make slipping inside her easier. He began to slowly drive into her, and she tried to push back to meet him, but he held
her where she was. "My turn, beloved. My turn to torture you."
She whimpered, but let him set the pace. Soon he was pressed tightly against the rear end he could spend years
looking at, and he murmured in her ear, "When you can, please wear clothes to show off your figure, Hermione. You
have perfect breasts and a magnificent ass, and when you don't have to wear Hogwarts clothes, you should dress to
show off your body."
"You … you just want … to brag …" she panted. "Make 'em … make 'em all hot … bothered … then tell …
with you … oh God less talk more fuck … please?" He laughed quietly in her ear and began to pick up the speed to
his thrusts, helping her back thrusts by pulling her closer. He knew she was nearing the orgasm she so wanted – he'd
gotten used to the interesting ripple that happened about a minute before – so he suddenly stopped after one in-thrust.
"No …" she moaned. "Wanna come … want it now!" That last came out as a growl, and she tried to pull away from
him, but he held her close. As he felt her slide back down from the precipice, he began to thrust into her again with
some gentle force – enough to make a slapping noise as their bodies met. This time he chose to let her slide over the
cliff into her waiting pleasure, and followed her quickly.
"Oh my God, Harry – that was five orgasms for you so far tonight! Did you discover some spell to give you
stamina like that?"
"Well, you are bewitching," he smiled back at her. "In answer to your question, though – no. I'm sixteen and
with a girl crazy enough to love me and want to make love to me. Inspiration, my dear wife. Inspiration."
---
As he slid out of her, she turned and held him tightly. "Harry, even if it wasn't required for your safety, I'd
marry you all over again. I adore you, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. And I want to spend the rest
of my life making sure you believe that you deserve it."
He kissed her lips gently. "When you say it, Hermione, I begin to. I have to think it's true. How else would a
woman as magnificent as you fall for me? Makes no sense otherwise. I just have to keep that feeling in me when
you're not right there to tell me over and over." He smiled at her. "I must be worth it, though. After all, you love
me."
She sniffed happily against his chest. "I love you."
"I love you too, Hermione."
"I think we're finally tiring each other out. Care to go into the kitchen with me? We can take the pudding in
to be refrigerated and used another time, get something to drink, and then go to bed. You've tired me out, my love!"
"I can agree with that. We've got our whole lives to experiment." He climbed from the stall and pulled her
into a towel and rubbed her down to dry her.
"Ooh, I like this," she sighed. "Service from a Quidditch god, who makes me feel warm and tingly in so many
ways." She kissed him again, and the towel dropped to the floor as his arms came around her to hug her.
Eventually they made their way into the kitchen with the remainder of the pudding, which Hermione carefully
put away. There was a lemonade pitcher on the counter, so Hermione poured two glasses. They found it a bit warm,
so Harry opened the freezer and pulled out some ice cubes and dropped them into the drinks. With an evil twinkle in
his eyes, he brushed his cold fingertips across her left nipple, drawing a startled "Harry!" from her. With a smile that
matched that twinkle, he opened the freezer and pulled out another ice cube.
"Read about this in one of Dudley's discarded magazines." He brushed the ice cube across her nipple, and
drew a ragged erotic gasp from her. "Oh, that must be cold. Let me warm you up." As soon as he had removed the
ice, his lips surrounded the erect nipple, and the sudden shift from cold to hot made her moan. He repeated this with
the other nipple, and received another delighted moan.
"Harry, I think that it's my duty to be your wife," she moaned. "If this is how you are with only me as your
lover, and no prior experience, then you'd kill other women once you were more skilled. I need to save all the women
of the world from your deliciously evil erotic skills." She whimpered as the ice touched her lips, and he followed
quickly with a kiss. "Please, let me save the world by being your victim for life," she said.
"For the good of the world, then, I agree." He kissed her again, and then knelt in front of her. The ice cube
came gently up to her slit, and she nearly screamed as it touched her – not from shock, but from how painfully erotic it
was. The ice slid carefully forward, and suddenly it was pressing against her clitoris.
Oh my God, is it actually throbbing? It feels like it! Oh God, now he's warming me up with his tongue … I'll
die a happy woman at least. She grinned widely as the ice came back to tease her clitoris, and then be removed to be
warm by Harry's eager mouth. Finally, she could take it no more. "Harry," she whispered, "please make me come,
either with your mouth, or with that red hot iron rod you carry with you all the time. Just make me come. Please?"
She saw his smile, and he stood, sliding into her one more time. Oh, thank the gods for athlete stamina!
Without thinking, her legs came up to lightly wrap around his waist, and he began to thrust into her. Neither of them
lasted very long, to be honest – he had driven her fairly close to the edge, and he had obviously been very turned on
by her reactions.
Once they had finished their lemonades, they helped each other into the bedroom, they would share from now
on, and slid into bed together, quickly falling into a contented slumber, wrapped in each others arms. Hedwig sat on
the window sill and hooted softly as if to say that all was right with the world.