A/N: At last, it's here!
Epilogue
"Which one, the black or the blue?"
"I don't mind, you look great in both."
"Harry! I need your opinion!"
"Fine... The black one."
"But isn't it too dark for the ocassion?"
"Well, the blue then."
"But don't you think it's too elegant? I'll look like a snob."
Harry looked at his wife standing in front of the mirror with two robes, staring critically at her reflection while she tried to decide what to wear. He smiled broadly before walking over to her. He stood behind her in the mirror's reflection.
"What?" she asked, looking at his mirror image.
"Since when do you care so much about your outfit?"
"I don't," she said. She sighed and left the robes on the bed. "But this is... different. I'm so-"
"Nervous," he finished for her.
Hermione nodded and he pulled her into a hug, kissing her softly on the lips.
"You don't have to be nervous; I'll be with you, right?"
"I know, but still... It'll be the first time we see each other for a long time."
"Everything will be fine, you'll see."
Hermione nodded, but the anxiety didn't disappear. Facing Ginny was something she had avoided for the last ten years. It hadn't been hard. Ginny hadn't really wanted to see them either. Right after Harry and Ginny had signed the divorce papers, the red-head had decided to leave England and move to the United States, where Fred and George had been living for some time. She wrote to Harry to tell him how she was doing every once in a while. In those letters, she would always ask about Hermione and the kids, but Hermione always felt it was some sort of forced and obligatory question. Recently, Ginny had moved to Paris, and was having a big party to celebrate the opening of a new boutique of "Virginia Weasley Fashion". Harry and Hermione had discussed for quite a while whether they should go or not when they received the invitation, and it was finally Hermione who had been the one who had decided to go. It was time to face the past and close that episode in their lives.
Hermione finally decided to wear the black robe and she put her hair in a loose bun that framed her face. She was almost 34 years old, but Harry liked to remind her that her face still looked like she was 18. She turned to face her husband.
"Well? How do I look?"
Harry smiled and kissed her again. "Gorgeous, as usual." Hermione smiled back and let him kiss her neck. "Darling," Harry said then, "what if we stay here a little longer? I don't think anyone would mind if we arrived late..."
Hermione laughed softly and kissed him. Actually, his offer didn't sound bad. She could definitely spend the evening in his arms, kissing him and...
"Mum! Dad!"
Harry and Hermione broke apart and, after a sigh, they grinned at each other. Hermione smoothed her robe and walked to the small living area of their hotel room. In the fireplace, it was the smiling face of their older son, Jamie.
"Finally! I thought you were out already," the boy said, his brown eyes shining behind his glasses.
"We were about to leave. Is everything alright?" Hermione asked.
"Yes, we just wanted to say goodnight," another voice said, and Ellie, their 7 year old daughter appeared beside her brother.
"Hey, you should be in bed by now," Harry said, looking at the two kids fondly.
"Dad, it's Saturday," Jamie said, rolling his eyes in a very Hermione-ish way.
"You're not giving Remus a hard time, are you?" Hermione asked.
"We are not, but Michael and Amy..." started Ellie.
"Wur fine!" Amy's voice cried. "I've been a goog girl, mummy."
Hermione smiled at the three year old's face that had pushed her way into the fireplace. "What about Michael? Is he giving Remus too much trouble?"
"I think Uncle Remus is about to have a heart attack," Jaime said and Ellie giggled.
"All right, kids, time to go to bed," Remus's voice echoed from somewhere in the background. Jamie, Ellie and Amy waved goodbye and disappeared. Two second later, Remus's face popped into the fire. "How are you two?"
"We are excellent," Harry said, kissing his wife on the cheek.
"The kids are behaving, aren't they?" Hermione asked.
"Of course they are! You have four adorable angels." Harry raised an eyebrow, and Remus smiled sheepishly. "Fine, I'll admit that little Michael needs more attention that the other three, but after all, he's only a year old..."
"I knew we shouldn't have left them, Harry," Hermione said.
"Please, Hermione. We are having a great time here, the five of us," Remus said, dismissively. "Besides, you deserve a weekend off."
"Thanks again, Remus. We truly appreciate this," Harry grinned.
Remus winked and said goodbye. Harry turned to Hermione. "Shall we go?"
Hermione nodded and let Harry put her cloak on. The sight of her family had given her strength. She adored her kids and her husband, and she felt that she was the happiest woman on Earth. In her heart, of course, she would always have five kids; she would never forget that son she had lost so long ago, and for whom she still grieved sometimes, late at night, with Harry holding her tightly.
She took his hand and they disapparated together.
* * *
The Boutique was quite big. Ginny was having the inauguration there, surrounded by the new designs. Hermione understood that the company was actually doing really well, and she felt glad for her former best friend.
They spotted a few familiar faces. Harry greeted some of the people he used to relate to when he was married to Ginny, and only then Hermione thought that maybe he was as uncomfortable as she. She looked anxiously for Ginny and finally spotted her in the middle of a crowd. She looked really beautiful. Her hair was shorter, and time hadn't passed by her.
Harry and Hermione exchanged a look, and Harry headed slowly towards Ginny, with Hermione breathing fast behind him.
"Hello, Gin," Harry said.
Ginny turned around and her eyes shone when she caught sight of Harry. Quickly, she muttered an apology and got out of the crowd, approaching the Potters.
"Harry!" she exclaimed, giving him a hug. "You look great!" Her eyes fell on Hermione then, and her smile didn't fade. "You too, Hermione. It's nice to see you again."
She slowly offered her hand and Hermione shook it. "I'm glad to see you so well," Hermione replied.
Ginny shrugged. "I can't complain."
She stayed with them a while longer, asking about the kids and trivial things. Harry did most of the talking, Hermione remained silent, and every once in a while she commented on something. She observed Ginny carefully. There wasn't sarcasm or arrogance in her attitude... Maybe this time had really changed her for good.
Later, Ginny left them alone. Harry had met an old friend and was enthusiastically talking to him, so Hermione took the chance to sneak out of the party. She wanted a little of fresh air and the night was so lovely, she couldn't resist the temptation to take a walk. She hadn't been in Paris for so long...
She hadn't meant it, at least not consciously, but her feet led her to Daguerre Street. When she realized she was in front of the house she had lived in for so long, she gasped. It was changed, obviously, but it was still her house. A wave of melancholy washed over her, and she wiped a lonely tear that had trailed down her cheek. She remembered her mum watering the garden, her dad reading the newspaper in the living room, and Ginny and her gossiping in her bedroom...
"It hasn't changed much, has it? The street, I mean."
Hermione swirled around and found Ginny, wrapped in her black cloak, staring at her. They looked at each other for a moment, and finally Hermione turned to look at the house again.
"No, it hasn't..." she whispered. "We have, though."
"Indeed." Ginny walked towards her until they were side by side, both of them with their eyes fixed on the houses.
A long silence followed. Hermione was nervous at first, but was surprised to see that she started to feel at ease with Ginny's company. She wanted to say something, but wasn't sure of what.
"Actually, you haven't changed that much," Ginny spoke again, without looking at her. "You're still very much the same silly girl I used to hang out with."
"You're calling me silly?" Hermione asked, slightly amused.
"Yeah," Ginny said, smiling faintly. "But I always admired your silliness."
Those words touched Hermione deeply. She knew that Ginny was, in her own way, apologizing. She would never say "I'm sorry" out loud, but it was enough that she would acknowledge their friendship.
"We had a great time here, didn't we?" Hermione asked, in a cheerful tone.
The red head shrugged. "Yes... Sometimes I miss it a lot."
Hermione wondered if she had wanted to say I miss you instead of it, but she knew it was probably wishful thinking.
"Gin... If you ever... If you ever go to London... I'd love to see you..."
Ginny turned to her and looked at her eyes. "Thanks, Hermione. Maybe I will." She looked at her watch. "I should probably go back. It was nice talking to you."
She started to walk away, but stopped and turned around again. "Harry looks happy. Take care of him, will you?"
Hermione nodded, incapable of saying anything else. She watched Ginny disappear. They would probably never be friends again, but she had the incredible feeling that something had been solved, that the most painful part in her life had been buried deep down and would never return again. She felt peaceful and at ease with the world.
She heard steps coming towards her from a different angle, and a few second later a pair of arms surrounded her from behind and Harry's familiar scent enveloped her.
"Are you alright?" he asked softly.
"Yes, I'm perfectly fine," she said sincerely.
"Really? She didn't do anything to you, did she?"
Hermione turned to look at him. "Were you worried?"
"I saw you leaving, and then her... I guessed you were coming here, so I followed you. I kept my distance in case you wanted to be alone... But I was ready to jump in if I saw her trying to do something to you."
She couldn't help but smile at his concern. "She is different now, Harry. We are at peace."
Somehow, he didn't need further explanation. It was enough for him to see her smiling face. He removed a lock of hair that had fallen onto her face and kissed her lovingly. Then he put his arm around her shoulders and looked at the house.
"Do you know what I thought the first time I came to this place?" he asked, pointing the Weasley's house.
"What?"
"I'll never forget the day I met Hermione Granger."
And with their hands intertwined, they turned their backs to the past and walked away, to the future they were building together.
THE END
A/N: Well guys, its' over. I had a lot of fun writing this (yes, and I suffered too) and I don't know how to thank everyone who has stick with me through this. To all of you who read, and specially to the ones who reviewed, thank you very, very much.
A lot of people have asked me about the book I based this story in. I'm not quite sure how that book got to me, considering it's from 1989 and I don't know how popular it is. I just remember buying in in some street stand about four years ago and falling in love with its powerful story. For those of you who haven't read it (because I know that there are people that looked for it to see how the original version was) I must tell you that I softened a lot of parts, and I tried to portray Ginny and Draco in a more human way... You should see Draco's character in the book!
Special thanks to Emily, Kris, Nitya, Sandra, Amynoelle, Heaven, MariantheLibrarian, Psy_Girl and Pen for their help and encouragement.
Your truly,
Angel-Wing