Disclaimer: I don't own nobody of the characters, they are property of JK Rowling.
Antone: I know, the Dursley deserved that, but he deserved to be with his wonderful fiancé so he left.
CreepySusie: If you want to know, I made the pairings thinking about those who would be good as a couple, I think Oliver/Katie could be a very cute one. Maybe too much Quidditch mad, but still cute.
Athena: I chose Remus because he is the last Marauder alive, at least the last of the real Marauders, so I thought what I would have done in Harry's situation, and I thought maybe he would have chosen him as a link to his father and his godfather.
AlexDurrani: For the Pensieve idea, I've to thank Coolone007 who suggested that in one review.
KypDurron: Well, it was understandable they would be upset and not believe that about Ron. After all, they did their best to raise him against the Dark Arts.
Chapter Nineteen
"Wheels in motion"
Next morning Harry woke up and lay on his bed, thinking about what they were planning. In a little more than a month he and Hermione would be married. Married!
It was the dream of his life coming true, in the end, and he wanted the ceremony to be perfect, as well as Hermione wanted that.
He was lost in his thoughts when he heard a soft knocking on his door.
"Harry, are you decent?" Hermione asked
"Yes, you can come in, love"
She entered the room still with her pyjamas, a yellow one decorated with small horses, and Harry met her few steps inside his room. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her at him, kissing her softly. After some moments, they parted.
"Good Morning, sweetheart" he whispered and she smiled.
"Good Morning, love. Well, I think I'll go to have a shower now, so then you can get ready, too. We have a long day before us." She winked at him and left the room, heading for the bathroom. Harry shook his head smiling, going to pick up some fresh clothes from his trunk.
Half an hour later, Harry entered the Grangers' kitchen to have breakfast. He was dressed with sky blue jeans and a burgundy T-shirt, which was very well plastered on his quite muscular upper body.
Hermione's jaw dropped slightly but she recovered quickly. Not so quickly to not be noticed by Harry, who winked at her, and her mother, who smiled, though.
They all ate happily, feasting on the pancakes, eggs, bacon and muffins that Mrs. Granger had prepared for them.
"Mum, you really hadn't to cook so much for us." Hermione said
"I know, my dear, but you have a very stressful day to go through and I wanted to do this. Now, get ready, we need a early start to find the perfect things we are searching."
The two teenagers nodded and left the room, then they headed upstairs in Hermione's bedroom, where they had left the prepared invitations. Harry tied half of them on Hedwig's leg, while Hermione tied the other half on Zeus' leg. Zeus was the owl her mother had bought her after the N.E.W.T.s as a gift for the excellent results. It was a dark grey owl, more or less of Hedwig's size.
When the two owls flew away, Harry hugged her from behind and kissed her softly on the neck. She turned and he captured her lips with his, resuming the kiss they had interrupted before.
After some moments the soft kiss evolved in a very heated one, tongues clashing on the other. They fell on Hermione's bed continuing kissing each other passionately.
"Hermione, dear, we're going to be late. Come down so we can go" Anne Granger shouted, so they parted and went down.
Seeing their wrinkled clothes and messy hair, she smiled knowingly but said nothing, just opening the door and heading toward the car.
Harry and Hermione followed blushing a little and remained silent for many minutes.
"We're arrived. Let's visit this shop first." Hermione's mother said and stopped the engine. All of them went to the flower shop, to choose the decorations for the manor and the church.
They surveyed every type of flower, orchids, geraniums, obviously roses, lilies and many others. Finally, after one hour spent in the that shop, they left, having ordered red and white roses and lilies.
Then they headed to a patisserie where they asked to see which type of wedding cakes they could do. The shopkeeper returned with a catalogue in which they found chocolate cakes, milfoils, lemon cakes…
Nothing of those satisfied them, so they left the shop and Mrs. Granger started rambling against such lazy workers, unable to bake a proper wedding cake.
"But don't worry, my dear, I'll bake it myself if necessary, but the two of you will have your perfect wedding cake, I swear."
"Uhm…Mrs. Granger, maybe we can go and have a look to a Wizarding patisserie. There is one in Diagon Alley which is famous worldwide." Harry said
"Yeah, Mum, maybe this is a good idea."
She agreed, so Harry took an hold newspaper to create a Portkey.
"Portus!" he muttered and then all of them touched the piece of paper. They felt the usual pull on the navel, and landed just out of the most famous patisserie in the Wizarding World: "Pumpkin Pie and similar".
It was an huge building, from where very good smells came to them. Harry led the two women into.
"Oh my god, Harry Potter!" the shopkeeper exclaimed, and Harry blushed.
"Yeah…I'm here to choose some wedding cakes, so if you can show us your production about it…"
"Oh, you're going to be married…I see…and I bet this wonderful young woman is the lucky one." he said, looking at Hermione, who blushed. "Am I wrong?"
"No, you're right, she is my wonderful fiancé" Harry confirmed, looking at her lovingly.
"Well, I'll return immediately with the catalogue. Wait here, please."
Few moments later, they were looking at strawberry cakes, sponge sculptures and chocolate one with frosts and nice decorations and finally the traditional wedding cake, with the figures of newlyweds on the top.
"I think that we should purchase the traditional wedding cake and two chocolate ones, then at least one strawberry cake." Mrs. Granger said.
"Yeah, but I was thinking, maybe we can take also one or two of the sponge sculptures…" Hermione added
After some consultation, Harry ordered two sponge sculptures, two chocolate cakes and the traditional wedding cake. They left and portkeyed back to the car.
After twenty minutes in the traffic, they reached a clothes shop.
"Mum, I still doesn't understand why I had to choose the wedding dress today if the bridesmaids will need to go and choose their ones in the next days. Why can't I go with them?"
"Because we're not sure we will find what we are searching in one day, and choosing a wedding dress is more difficult than choosing a bridesmaid's one."
Hermione didn't seem convinced but said nothing.
They entered the shop and asked to see wedding dresses. The shopkeeper brought Hermione and her mother in a secluded area in the back of the shop, while Harry remained there, waiting. It was tradition that the groom should not see the dress before the ceremony.
Hermione tried a light pink one, with the veil till the middle of her back, but she didn't like it because it was a little too old fashioned for her taste. Then it was the turn of a white one, sleeveless, which was a little too thigh for her.
She passed two hours trying dresses without finding the one perfect for her. Yes, she liked a lot a pure white one, with had short sleeves and white gloves, it fitted her well, but still it seemed to her that it was not perfect.
"Mum, perhaps I should have a look at the wizard dresses, I'm a witch after all…"
Mrs. Granger didn't seem pleased, but nodded, and they called Harry, leaving the shop. After that, they went to have lunch in a very nice restaurant near there.
Harry was starving, and for one time he was sure he could have eaten more than Ron, so he tucked in happily when his roasted chicken with mashed potatoes arrived. Hermione giggled softly.
"What are you giggling at? Have I food on my face?" Harry asked.
"You're obviously not trained to go shopping with women, as you're clearly starving" Mrs. Granger stated smiling. Hermione nodded.
Harry felt a little embarrassed but smiled, too.
That afternoon they went to Diagon Alley again, entering "Wizard Weddings". Harry started looking for his dress, and found a suit that he liked a lot. It was composed of black robes and a white crisped shirt that seemed quite good. He tried it and the mirror he looked himself at said:
"My dear, I saw many grooms try that suit, but on nobody it fitted so well. I think it is perfect to you."
"Thanks" he said and exited the changing room to show it to Hermione. When she saw him, her jaw dropped again, and she really was close to drool.
"My god, Harry, you're breathtaking!" she exclaimed then. Her mother turned and saw him.
"I've really to agree, it's perfect for you, Harry. Well, one done, one to go, then."
While the two women went to try other dresses, Harry changed back to his clothes.
One hour later, finally, Hermione found the dress for her.
"My dear, I'm sure your groom is going to faint on the aisle when he sees you. You're really gorgeous! The best bride I had ever seen with this dress. It seems it was made just for you."
Hermione smiled and having already had her mother's approval, changed back to her clothes.
Few minutes later, she and Mrs. Granger joined Harry to the cashier with the dress already packed.
"The total is 130 Galleons, please."
Harry paid with a Wizard cheque and they left the shop, then portkeyed back again.
When they returned to the Grangers' house, Hermione and Harry found the replies of all the wedding party. All the requested groomsmen and bridesmaids had agreed to participate. Plus, they found a letter from the Weasleys.
"Dear Harry and Hermione,
we saw the Pensieve, and we're really
ashamed for the way we thought about
the two of you. We had no right to doubt
your honesty about Ron, so if you can
forgive us, we would like to seal that hosting
the two of you for one week before the wedding.
We know you're busy, but we will do all we can
to help.
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley"
Harry smiled at the letter and asked Hermione if she wanted to go. She agreed so Harry replied saying that they would be there next week. Then the two teenagers went in the dining room to have dinner.
In the meantime, Mrs. Granger had cooked a wonderful meal, with tuna salad, roast beef, ham, cheese, many raw vegetables and finally a wonderful orange sherbet.
After dinner, all of them watched an adventure movie on TV, then Harry and Hermione headed to bed. Since Harry would leave the next morning with Remus to go to Potter's Manor and rebuilt it for the rest of the week, they decided to sleep together, so they changed in their sleeping suits and then cuddled together in Hermione's bed.
Harry slid one arm around her waist and pulled her at him, inhaling her scent, and finally falling asleep after a very stressful day.
Next morning, Hermione woke up still in Harry's arms, and looked at his peaceful sleeping face. She sighed, thinking that for the rest of the week he would not be with her, and caressed softly his cheek.
"I'm very lucky to have found such a wonderful man in my life" she thought and carefully exited the bed to go and have a shower. When Harry woke up he was alone in bed, but immediately heard Hermione's voice humming in the bathroom, so he relaxed and took his glasses, sliding them on his eyes.
After breakfast, a loud "Crack!" was heard in the Granger's garden, and then a knock on the door. Hermione went to open and saw her former Professor, Remus Lupin.
"Professor! It's so good see you again!" she exclaimed
"Hermione, how many times I've to say you to call me simply Remus? I'm not your Professor anymore" he said. She smiled at him sheepishly.
Harry arrived with his small luggage and saw the last Marauder still alive. Well, at least the last of the true Marauders, as Peter Pettigrew was nothing more than a filthy traitor, even if he was still alive, though Harry was not sure of this.
"Remus! What a pleasure to see you!" he said, clapping the back of his best man.
"Hey, Harry. I'm glad to see you, too."
"Well, thanks for accepting to be my best man." Harry said.
"It's the minimum I can do for James' son. At this purpose, when you're ready, we can go. We have a lot of work to do."
Harry nodded, went to say hello to the Grangers in the kitchen and then kissed Hermione softly for some long moments, then he took his luggage and Disapparated with Remus to Potter's Manor.
When he arrived there, he looked sadly at the ruins once more, then looked at Remus and asked:
"So, Remus. You know I want it to be exactly how it was when my parents lived here, so how it was? Can you tell me and then we will start working?"
Remus nodded, then explained how the Manor was.
Harry then raised his wand and conjured blocks of stone matching the ones of the ruins, and the same did Remus. Harry worked on the frontal face, Remus on the rear.
At noon they had lunch in a Wizarding place, "The Golden Snitch", in which Harry was immediately recognized, not only as the "Boy-Who-Lived" but also as James' son. They all remembered very well his father, so Harry lingered a little more to hear stories about him.
In the afternoon, they resumed the work on the lateral faces, Harry on the right one, Remus on the left. They worked till six o'clock, placing the roof, too, then headed again to the same place to have dinner. Again, Harry heard stories about his father, and Remus too participated in telling them.
In the next days they completed the various floors, purchasing furniture as similar as possible to the original and placing it in the rooms were it was first. When they worked on the library, Harry placed an order to Flourish and Blotts to send him all the books they had. In this way he created a place Hermione would love very much. When they had completed all the Manor, the last day of the week was spent placing the books in the shelves and it took almost all the day, as Harry placed also all his old schoolbooks and some diaries of his parents he found in an hidden chamber in the basement.
The church was near the Manor as it was many years ago, so they had only to polish it and enlarge it to contain all the invited people. Then they Apparated back to the Grangers.
Hermione opened the door and gave Harry a bear hug that could rival with Mrs. Weasley's ones, then kissed him for a long time. Remus left them alone, smiling. "They're exactly as James and Lily" he thought.
"I missed you so much, honey" she whispered, finally parting for need of air.
"I missed you too, sweetheart" he replied, kissing her again.