Love Conquers All
Chapter 5:
New York, New York
The building seemed to reach the sky. London didn't have skyscrapers like the ones that lined the streets of New York City. Harry and Hermione had taken a port key from the Ministry early that morning, and now they were in a cab traveling into the heart of New York. Hermione's parents had given her the address of the Dentist office, and they were meeting there before they went to the hotel to settle in. Harry and Hermione gasped at the strange clothes the younger kids of Manhattan were wearing and the amount of people that were walking and driving.
The cab reached the building and it pulled over to let them out. Harry paid the man in Muggle American money, which they exchanged at the American Ministry when they arrived. He gave the man a tip, grabbed the bags from the back of the cab, and they walked into the building. Hermione walked up to the reception desk. "We are meeting Mr. and Mrs. Granger. Can you please tell me where their office is?"
The receptionist smiled and said, "One moment please." She picked up the telephone in front of her and spoke to someone on the other end. When she placed the phone down she looked up at them and said, "You can leave your bags here, and then go up to the 10th floor. Follow the signs, and you'll see their office."
"Thank you very much." Hermione smiled at her.
The two of them rode the elevator up in silence and grasps hands when they exited it and followed the signs to the office. Hermione opened the door with the name "Dr. Paul Granger and Dr. Jane Granger" and squealed with delight when she saw her mother sorting out some charts. She let go of Harry's hand and flung herself at her mum. Harry couldn't help but laugh.
"Mum! I've missed you!!! Where's dad?" Hermione spoke into her mother's hair.
"Oh Hermione, I've missed you too. Your dad is with patient right now. He will be a little while." She let go of Hermione and came over to Harry. She gave him a great big hug and said, "Has she been treating you well Harry dear?"
Harry laughed with Hermione and replied, "Only the best, Mrs. Granger."
Mrs. Granger separated from him and smiled, "Good. I suppose the same goes for you. Well come on. We will wait for Dad in the office. We already cleared the schedule for the afternoon. But we assumed two would want to spend the evening together, seeing we are in New York." She smiled at the two of them and led them to the office down the hall.
The sat and chatted for a while before Mr. Granger came in. "Dad!" Hermione squeaked before giving him a hug.
"Oh Hermione, how I've missed you!" He said into her hair. Harry smiled. He had never had a great family like Hermione has, and he was glad to share in it now. Harry stood up and shook Mr. Grangers hand before he pulled Harry into a manly hug. "And how are you Harry?" He asked.
"I'm great sir. Thank you for inviting us here."
"Well it's our pleasure, we thought you could escape the horrors of England for a few days. Plus we wanted to see you before you went off to your last year of school!" He pulled Hermione into a sideways hug. "So are you hungry?"
"Starving!" Harry replied rubbing his stomach.
"Oh honestly Harry. You just ate when we got the Ministry." Hermione sighed.
"`Mione, that was two hours ago! It's lunch time!" The clock on the desk near them read 11 45.
"Oh very well. Where are we going, Dad?"
"Well you are in America. So you might as well eat American food! How about TGI Fridays, it's our favorite here?" Harry shrugged with Hermione. They had never eaten there, but if the Grangers liked it, he was sure it was good.
The group made their way out into the busy street. They had walked about three blocks when they reached the restaurant. They put their name in and were told it was going to be about a 15 minute wait. So they sat down on the red benches that were their. Harry and Hermione started to look around at all the old American memorabilia that was on the walls. There were guitars and jukeboxes that were lit up and blinking. But there were also millions of posters from bands and old ads pinned up around the restaurant.
When they were seated they continued to look at the old things on the wall. The waiter came and took their drink order. They ordered, and Mr. Granger also ordered a plate of Nachos for an appetizer for them all. With in 5 minutes they nachos were there. The four of them ate and laughed about them being so messy.
"So Harry, tell us what you got for your birthday." Mrs. Granger spoke up after they had been joking with Hermione about her dainty way to eat a greasy nacho.
"Ahh. Well I got a lot of wizard type things. But I got this watch," he showed it to the Grangers. "Hermione gave it to me actually. It shows time, and the pictures on it tell me where everyone is. See I can see that Ginny is at the Burrow, Ron is at Grimmald Place, and Hermione is MIA (A/N: for those of you who don't know…it means Missing In Action). Hmm I guess it can't tell where you are if you aren't in London."
"Wow. That's different. They don't have things like that in our world."
Harry laughed, "No they don't."
When the waiter came back, he took their orders for their meals and refilled their drinks. After he left, Hermione and her mother excused themselves to wash their hands in the bathroom. Harry decided this was the time to ask Mr. Granger. But unfortunately as he began to speak, Mr. Granger spoke first.
"I'm very thankful that you were able to accommodate Hermione for those two weeks Harry. It just wasn't possible for us to bring her."
"Oh it was no trouble at all Mr. Granger."
"Please, call me Paul, we've known each other for two years. And if I know what your thinking, I'm going to be telling you to call me Dad soon." His eyes sparkled at Harry, whose mouth hung open.
He quickly shut it and spoke, "Umm…yes sir. Well you know that Hermione and I have been together for two years, and I assure you that I would never hurt her. I would like nothing better in this world, besides the downfall of Voldemort, to be by your daughter's side until we die. I would like to ask you if I could take her hand in marriage." Harry breathed a sigh of relief that it was over.
"Harry, you didn't even have to ask. I know that she loves her, and it's apparent to me, and has been for sometime, that you love her as well. I couldn't ask for a better candidate for son-in-law. Of course I will allow it, and I'll do you one better. You have my and her mothers blessing." Mr. Granger stood up and gave Harry a hug. "Welcome to the family, Son." Harry smiled and sat down with so much relief. "Oh come now Harry. It wasn't that scary was it?"
"What wasn't scary?" Hermione asked as she sat down.
Mr. Granger smiled and replied, "Harry was just telling in more detail the time he saw you as a cat."
Hermione reached over and hit Harry's shoulder, "Ow! It was scary, very scary!" They all laughed at this and soon after their food arrived. The rest of the meal the couple chatted with the Grangers about the upcoming school year, the house they have been staying in, and a lot about how Ron was doing. The left TGI Friday's around 1 30 and headed back to the Hotel that Hermione and Harry were staying in. They had not made the reservations, so they had no clue where it was or how nice it was.
The hotel was called the Ramada Inn. It looked small and old from the outside but when you entered into it, the designing was new and sleek. They checked in and found their room. The Grangers followed them up to help them get settled. They traveled the elevator up 15 stories and found the room marked, "1510." It was a corner room and when they stepped inside Hermione fell in love with it. It was bright, because it had a window the stretched the length of one wall. There were two rooms, not including the bathroom. One had a queen size bed and TV, and the other had a TV and a couch. The bathroom was brilliant. It had a Jacuzzi bath and a shower nozzle in it. The sink and bath were marble and there was a mirror that stretched the length of the wall.
Harry turned to the Grangers and said, "This is too much, we are only staying for three nights."
Mr. Granger shook his head and replied, "Nothing is too much for family." He winked at Harry and said they'd meet them here at 5 tomorrow to bring them to dinner. Then the Grangers left, leaving Harry and Hermione to unpack and get acquainted with the hotel and room.
Once they had unpacked, Hermione decided to go for a swim. Her and Harry both changed into their swim suits. But when Hermione went to the pool, Harry said he was going to make plans for tonight and went off to the concierge's desk. Harry stood at the desk, waiting patiently for the young woman to get of the phone. Her name tag read "Jackie." When she finally hung up she smiled up at him and said, "How can I help you sir?"
"Well I'm looking for a really nice restaurant for tonight."
"Ahh. From England are you?" Harry nodded. "I here it's really rainy there. Is that true?"
Harry smiled, "Depends on the season really."
She smiled back, "I see. So what kind of restaurant are you looking for?"
"No place with foreign food. It's the first time we have come to America and my girlfriend really wants to experience it."
"Hmm. Ok." Jackie typed some things into her computer, then looked up. "Tavern on the Green. It's a beautiful restaurant in the center of Central park. If you want I can set up a horse and buggie ride after your dinner?"
"Horse and buggie?" Harry asked.
"It's a Horse drawn carriage. The driver will bring you all around the park and drop you off in front of the restaurant again."
Harry smiled, "Perfect. How should we dress?"
"Well, you will have to be in a jacket and tie; she will have to be in a dress." Harry nodded. He thanked Jackie, told her to make reservations for 6, and then headed for the pool. He and Hermione swam and flirted in the pool for about two hours. Then, around 4 they decided to get out and go back upstairs.
When they got back in the room, Harry took his leave to the bathroom. He took a long shower, trying to shake the chill of the pool. When he got out there was a message written in the steam on the mirror. It read, I love you. He smiled, even though no one could see. He toweled off his body and hair, slipped into some boxers he had brought in, and went to tell Hermione he loved her too.
She was watching TV lying on the bed. She was eating some chocolate she had bought before they left, and she was still wrapped in her towel. Her hair was tangled and a mess, hanging just below her shoulders. Harry leaned against the wall and just looked at her. She didn't look up from her TV show, but she knew he was there. She loved that he just liked to look at her.
"You're beautiful, Hermione." She finally turned her head and gave him the You-are-too-sweet look. He crawled across the bed and kissed her neck. Then he whispered, "I love you too" in her ear. She kissed him on the lips, smiled and then got up to take a shower.
Harry finished getting dressed in a crisp navy blue suit that he conjured up. He wore a identical matching shirt, and a white tie. Then he styled his hair with a new spell he had learned from Wizard Wireless. Then he conjured up a stunning maroon dress that was Hermione's size. He added perfectly matching heels and a dainty purse to go with it. He laid them on the made bed, and then conjured up a quill and parchment. On the paper he wrote:
Hermione,
I will be awaiting your arrival in the lobby. I hope you like the dress; I thought it would look stunning on you. Get ready for a night of romance.
Your love,
Harry
He placed the note on top of the dress and exited the room. When he reached the elevator he stood there tapping his shoe for it to arrive. Soon the bell dinged and Harry stepped inside the carpeted elevator. Once enclosed and alone he conjured up a single red rose. When he reached the lobby, he sat down on one of the couches that were in the middle. He sat for almost a half hour before he heard the clicking of high heeled shoes behind him. He smiled to himself and then stood and turned around.
She was stunning. Her long curls cascaded down the side of her neck, and shaped her round face. The dress Harry had conjured hugged her curvy shape perfectly, accenting everything that needed to be. It hung low on her chest, but not low enough to keep your mind from guessing. Even though the high heels were about 3 inches, Hermione was still a good 4 inches shorter than Harry. He stepped closer to her, handed her the rose, kissed her cheek, and then whispered in her ear.
"You look absolutely brilliant."
"Thank you love, you look dashing yourself." She said returning his kiss. "This dress is beautiful."
"Ahh. But the beauty is the one who is wearing it." Harry replied. Hermione blushed as Harry slid a hand to the small of her back and guided her to the door.
It was very warm, seeing it was an early August night. They had the doorman hail a cab for them, and they rode in silence to the restaurant. When the arrived, Harry paid the driver, and got out, lending a hand to Hermione for to follow. She gasped at the beauty of Tavern on the Green. It was quite stunning. It was dark out, and the dark green awning was lit with small white lights. Beautiful summer flowers traced the path way to the restaurant, and wonderfully romantic music played lightly in the air.
Harry wrapped Hermione's hand in the crook of his elbow and led the way to the door. He opened the door for her saying, "My Lady." She giggled and walked through the door. At the Hostess desk, Harry checked in, and the couple was immediately sat at a small table over looking the pond in central park.
The scene was beautiful. More white lights were set up along the pond's edges and there reflection twinkled in the water. In the center of the pond, a small gazebo stood with lights all around it and dazzling flowers surrounding it. Several couples were in paddle boats, one couple was in the gazebo cuddling close, and another where lying on a blanket on the ponds bank, staring at the stars.
"This is exquisite Harry."
"Nothing but the best for you `Mione."
The waiter came and the two ordered their drinks for the evening. And they talked lightly over the bread. Then the two ordered their meals and some more drinks. A violinist came to the table and said, "For the romantic couple." Then he started to play an Italian ballad, like you would hear on a gondola. Harry smiled at the man, and took Hermione's hand. She mouthed "I love you" to him, and lightly brushed her thumb over his knuckles. When the violinist was finished, Harry gave him two dollars and a gracious thank you. Hermione praised his ability, and the man went along to serenade the next couple.
Then their dinner came, and the two talked about the deliciousness of their food. "This fillet rivals anything Mrs. Weasley could cook up." Harry spoke up after swallowing a bit of steak. Hermione giggle and pointed to her salmon with her fork.
"This is the best bit of salmon I have ever eaten." Harry smiled at his lovely soon-to-be fiancé.
"I'm glad you are enjoying yourself tonight Hermione."
"Oh Harry, this is so romantic. This is a wonderful night." Harry smiled at her and continued to eat his meal. When they finished, the waiter took away their plates.
"I'll leave you two with the dessert menu. I'll come back soon if you would like anything." Hermione smiled and thanked the man, then read the menu.
"Actually, Harry. I'm not really in the mood for dessert right now. Why don't we just order something when we get back to the room?" She asked him looking up questioningly.
"Whatever you like, love. This is your night." Hermione smiled, and Harry summoned the waiter over to ask him for the check.
After Harry had paid the check, he stood up and pulled Hermione's chair out for her. Then the two walked outside. It had chilled some since they had arrived two hours prior, but it was still quite warm out. At the end of the walkway, the horse and buggie stood waiting for them. Harry nodded at the driver, and then looked at Hermione.
"Fancy a ride around the park, love?"
"Oh Harry, that would be brilliant!" The driver hopped down from his seat and helped Harry and Hermione into the buggie. Harry grabbed the plaid blanket that he had told the driver to place in the back and laid it over the two of them. Hermione smiled at him and then looked all around at the beauty of Central Park at night. Harry nervously felt the ring in his jacket pocket. She's not going to say no, Harry thought, she loves me. Right? Oh Honestly Harry, of course she does. Harry chuckled out loud at his stupidity.
"What's so funny Harry?"
"Nothing, love. Everything's absolutely perfect."
The drove around the park a little more until Harry could see the main fountain coming up. He turned to Hermione, took her hands and said, "Hermione Jane Granger, you are everything to me. You are the sunlight in my day, and the twinkling stars in my night. You make me surpass happiness every time you smile, and when you laugh I feel as though I could never be sad. I could not imagine a day with out seeing your dark brown eyes twinkling at me. I want to be the one who holds you up when you are weak, and the one who wakes you up every morning. `Mione," She was crying now, and he took out the ring, and opened the box, "would you do me the honor by becoming my wife?"
All she could do was nod. Her tears over came her voice, and all she could do was smile and nod. She opened her mouth to say, "Of course!" but nothing came out. Harry grinned and slipped the beautiful ring on to her finger. Then he kissed her lightly on the lips and drew her into a bone crushing hug. "I love you so much Harry James Potter." She managed to squeak out.
The spent the rest of the ride around the park kissing and cradling each other. They were getting married. Hermione was the happiest girl in the world at that very minute, and she knew she would for the rest of her life. When they arrived at the restaurant again, Harry climbed out of the buggie first, and then extended his hand for his fiancé. He grabbed one of the numerous cabs that were lined up by the entrance after he tipped the buggie driver. Then he and Hermione drove home whispering words of love and desire in each others ear.
When they arrived at the hotel they ran to the elevator. Once the doors were closed Harry wrapped his arms around her, and pulled her into a passionate, fiery kiss. Hermione's hands instantly went around his neck and she gave just as much emotion back into the kiss. When they arrived on the 15th floor the separated from the kiss with reluctance and briskly walked to their room. After kicking off their shoes, Harry immediately pulled her to the bathroom and began to fill up the Jacuzzi, with bubbles. He conjured up dozens of candles and lined the bathroom with them. He turned off the electrical lights, and took Hermione in his arms.
"You have made me the luckiest man alive, Hermione." He captured her lips once again, but this time the kiss was slow and romantic. He slipped off the shoulder straps of her dress and kissed her silky skin. She moaned quietly from the warmth of his lips. Harry traced his hands down her arms and his kisses up her neck to her ear. He stopped and whispered, "You mean more to me than life itself." The he nibbled on her ear and traced it with his tongue.
As he was doing this, Hermione was slipping off his jacket and untying his tie. She started to unbutton his shirt as he once again claimed her lips, this time slipping his tongue into her mouth. Once all the buttons were undone she ran her hands up his abs, across his chest, and down his arms, pushing his blue shirt off his body. Hermione kissed his neck and chest as he reached behind her and unzipped her dress. The silky material fluttered to the floor leaving Hermione in her black lace thong.
"Well, I didn't pick that out." Harry stated shocked.
Hermione smiled, "No, I chose this one my own. But I'm guessing you are a fan."
"Yes, love, definitely a fan." He chuckled and ran his hands down her sides and then to her ass. He pulled her to him and kissed her passionately. The tub was half full now, so Hermione started to unzip Harry's pants. And with a small little tug, they joined her dress on the tile floor. He stood, kissing her neck, in his black cotton boxers that clearly showed his excitement. Hermione ran her fingers along the elastic waist band of his boxers, and he moaned in anticipation. Slowly she pulled his boxers over his hips and ass, and they too lay at his feet.
Harry got to his knees and kissed along her stomach, pulling her lacey thong down as he made his way down her body. Teasing her, Harry only kissed her inner thighs and abs. She moaned in frustration, and Harry stood up once her panties were on the floor. Harry stood up and kissed her lips, then stepped into the steaming bath. He sat down and held out his hand for her to join him. She stepped in and sat down in front of him, leaning against his stomach. She nuzzled her head into the crook of his neck, and sighed in contentment. Hermione could feel his want for her on her back. She reached behind his head and ran her fingers through his hair. Harry cupped her breast and massaged it. After a while, his hands traced her body and teased her some more.
They continued in this fashion, teasing each other off and on for nearly an hour, when they couldn't take it anymore. Hermione had turned around and kissed Harry with so much fire, he couldn't wait any longer. He broke of the kiss from Hermione, grabbed his wand, and preformed a drying charm on the bathroom. The water in the Jacuzzi instantly disappeared; the two naked bodies were dry as well. Harry scooped Hermione up, and walked out to the bed. He pulled back the covers and placed Hermione on the bed. Then he climbed in the bed, and the two lovers passionately made love all night.
* * *
The next morning to two days were filled with tours and museums. They were both excited on seeing the city. The two days they spent touring the city, it was 85 degrees and beautiful. The trip was mainly for Hermione, who was truly excited about seeing the history of Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Empire State Building, the beauty of Trump Tour, and the excitement of Times Square. The days were spent walking, driving, or taking the subway from one side of the city to the next. Miraculously, the couple never got lost.
It was a great feeling to be free in America. There was no threat of Voldemort in the States, as there was in Europe. Sure, they had heard about him, and the American Ministry had sent countless Aurors to help in the effort, but Voldemort never terrorized America like he did Europe. Harry loved the feeling of not needing to look over his shoulder every few feet, or have to fend of the hording girls who knew who he was. He was in Muggle America, however. He asked himself countless times why he didn't just get up and move to America, to avoid all the problems in his life. But looking at Hermione's smile and thinking of Ron, and the Weasley's, he knew he couldn't turn his back on his world.
At 4 o'clock on their last day in the city, they retired to the hotel after a long day of museum hunting and shopping. They had managed to get a gift for every member of the Weasley family, down to the expected baby of Bill and Patty. Hermione had stopped at FAO Swartz and ooed and ahhed over the baby toys, she spent an hour just picking out the baby's gift. Harry knew that she would be an excellent mother, and he couldn't wait to experience that with her. They had also got a gift for Remus and Luna. Then the couple went to several clothing stores for Hermione, and Harry gave her no limit, which probably wasn't a wise thing to do. When they returned to the room, Harry looked as though he would fall over from all the bags he was carrying. So instead of just putting them down gently, he dropped them, and got a hard smack on the arm from Hermione.
"What if you broke something?" She quickly conjured up another trunk and shrunk all the gifts to fit inside.
Then the two of them got ready for dinner with her parents. They were planning on going to their new apartment for dinner, because the previous night they had went out to celebrate the engagement. So the two of them dressed in jeans and nice shirts, and they met Mr. and Mrs. Granger in the lobby. They traveled to their apartment by taxi. It was in the upper east side of Manhattan, and it was in a beautiful building. When Hermione entered it she was immediately in love with it.
"It's nothing like home, but it's beautiful." There were two bedrooms, a living room, a formal dining room, and a kitchen with an island counter top to eat breakfast and such. It was truly a gorgeous apartment. Mrs. Granger and Hermione made dinner while Harry and Mr. Granger talked about sports, Quidditch and football (which Harry had recently gotten into, thanks to Dean.).
When dinner was ready they sat in the dining room and chatted about plans for the wedding. Hermione and Harry had talked about it a little but not much.
"Actually, Mrs. Granger, we haven't talked about it all that much. We thought-" Harry started but was interrupted by Mrs. Granger.
"Oh honestly Harry. You are going to marry our daughter. It's time you start to call us Paul and Jane."
Harry smiled. "Alright, Jane. Um so as I was saying, we were going to wait to decide, because we don't have the slightest clue."
They chatted about what style dress Hermione wanted. Her mother was so excited about the wedding. She did express concern about them being so young, Hermione wasn't even turning 17 for another week. But Harry and Hermione put the concern to hush when they explained that in the Wizarding world it wasn't rare to see students going into their 7th year at Hogwarts become engaged. The rest of the night went without hitch. They said their goodbyes at the end of the evening.
"You two take care." Jane said. "Study hard, kids. And you take care of her Harry. We trust you with our little girl. We love you both so much." She was tearing up when she pulled the two of them into a hug. When she let go she stood back, and they said goodbye to Paul.
"Yes. Harry, take care of Hermione. I know of this Voldemort character, so watch out for her."
"I won't let anything happen to her, sir." He shook Paul's hand and then they hugged briefly.
After, he hugged his little girl tight. "Congratulations Princess. I love you."
Then they waved goodbye and walked down to the street. Hermione had tears in her eyes, and Harry hugged her tight with his arm around her. The next day they would go home, to their home.
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