Give Me Another Chance

Summary: When Harry confesses his love to Hermione, she lies, telling him that she loves Ron. Harry leaves and Hermione realizes her mistake. Her and Ron's relationship quickly crumbles. 3 years later, as a professor at Hogwarts, Hermione has the opportunity to rectify the mistake that has been haunting her every minute of every day since that fateful night. But will Harry listen to her? Who will help Hermione in her quest for Harry's heart?

A special thanks to Lycus (fanfiction.net) for giving me the idea for this story, and just to let you all know, this prologue is going to be from Harry's point of view, but I think that the rest of it is going to be from Hermione's and another character(s) that has/have yet to be named.

Please Enjoy!

Give Me Another Chance

Prologue: Confessions of the Heart

25-year-old Harry Potter slowly walked up the sidewalk to Hermione's house twirling the single ruby rose he had picked on his way. His hands were trembling and his legs seemed ready to give out from under him. He still had no idea what he was going to say to Hermione—he always performed better when going spur-of-the-moment anyway.

Harry was deeply and madly in love with Hermione, and could envision spending the rest of his life with her. She completed him, and he would do anything for her.

Harry had actually been in love with Hermione for two or three years now and had yet to tell her. The reason he hadn't told her yet was because there was a problem: Ron. Hermione had been going out with Ron for a little over five years now. The only light at the end of the tunnel was that Hermione had denied all four of Ron's marriage proposals, claiming that she wasn't ready yet. Harry hoped this meant that Hermione wasn't truly in love with Ron, and that she might actually give him a chance. But then again, it could've just meant that Ron had not yet stopped badgering her about giving up her position as Transfiguration Professor, which she had now held for two years, so they could start a proper family.

So here Harry was, sweat beading on his forehead and hand poised to knock. He used his arm to wipe the sweat off his head and wiped his also-sweaty hand on his jeans as an excuse to delay the moment of truth for as long as possible.

"Here goes nothing," Harry muttered to himself before finally knocking on the door.

Hermione opened it dressed in her pajamas, which consisted of small shorts and an overlarge T-shirt. She smiled at Harry, who had to lean on the doorframe because his knees went weak. "Hi, Harry! It's great to see you, but…why are you here unexpectedly at nine at night?"

"Hermione…er…" Harry's mouth didn't seem to be working, so he wordlessly held out the rose.

"Thanks, Harry!" said Hermione, who took the rose and smiled at Harry again.

"Yeah…er…sure," said Harry. Hermione was starting to look at him weirdly, so he decided to go for it before things got too out of hand. "Hermione, the reason I'm here is to tell you something. I want to tell you that I think you are the most beautiful and wonderful woman a guy could know, and that I am completely and utterly in love with you. I couldn't hold it in any longer, I just had to let you know before it was too late," finished Harry.

Hermione stared at Harry in shock, a tense silence enveloping them. Harry could see the cogs and wheels turning furiously behind Hermione's eyes, her brain trying to understand what was happening. As the seconds ticked by Harry's heart and hopes fell lower—he knew now that he had made a mistake and had definitely changed his relationship with Hermione…in a very bad way.

Finally, after what seemed like forever to Harry, Hermione spoke, her eyes full of tears. She whispered, "I'm sorry, Harry. Just to let you know though, you weren't too late. You just…it just wasn't meant to be. I love and always have loved Ron."

A/N: Hmmm. Poor Harry.

I promise you that this was just a really short prologue and that the actual chapters of the story are going to be about 2,000 words long.

I hope you enjoyed it, and Please Review!

Chapter 2 – Mistake

3 Years Later

Hermione opened her front door dressed in her pajamas, which consisted of small shorts and an overlarge T-shirt. She smiled at Harry, who she hadn't seen in a couple days. "Hi, Harry! It's great to see you, but…why are you here unexpectedly at nine at night?"

"Hermione…er…" Harry's cheeks were bright red and he wordlessly held out a beautiful red rose.

"Thanks, Harry!" said Hermione, who smiled at Harry and couldn't help the flutter in her chest and the warming in her heart whenever he was around.

"Yeah…er…sure," said Harry. Hermione was getting confused—what was wrong with him? "Hermione, the reason I'm here is to tell you something. I want to tell you that I think you are the most beautiful and wonderful woman a guy could know, and that I am completely and utterly in love with you. I couldn't hold it in any longer, I just had to let you know before it was too late," finished Harry.

Hermione stared at Harry in shock, a tense silence enveloping them. This was Hermione's wildest dream coming true. Harry actually loved her! All these years of loving Harry with all her heart and he really loved her back! The most…eligible bachelor…in the wizarding world.

Yes, Harry loved her, or so he thought. But Hermione knew better. This was just a passing fancy, a crush, there was no way he could love her—a plain bookworm. Her heart was screaming yes but her brain was screaming no even louder. What would Harry do when he finally realized that he could have whoever he wanted in the wizarding world? He would leave her, that's what he would do, and she knew that it would break her heart. No, maybe it would just be better to save herself from that heartbreak now.

So, decision made, Hermione tried to focus on Harry again but found that her vision was blurred by her tears. She whispered, "I'm sorry, Harry. Just to let you know though, you weren't too late. You just…it just wasn't meant to be. I love and always have loved Ron."

"NOOOO!" shouted Hermione, bolting upright in her bed. She looked around for a second, disoriented, before falling back on her pillow and crying into it, just like she had done twice a week every week for the past three years. "No," she moaned again, feeling the pain and regret as if it had happened yesterday.

It was only a week later when Harry left that Hermione realized what she had done. She had been and still was very in love with him. And when he left, she realized that he really had been in love with her. He had been in love with her, and like an idiot, she had rejected him. Rejected him for Ron!

Ron. Two weeks without Harry there to balance out their personalities and their relationship had fallen apart. And when Hermione had realized this and tried to break things off with Ron, he went berserk on her; screaming, crying, laughing, going into denial, and all of that fun stuff. He and Hermione didn't talk so much anymore, and when they did it was strained and awkward.

She and Ron were done and Harry had left, her chance was gone. Not that she hadn't tried to find him. She even took the first month of that next school year off in her efforts to find him, but to no avail. He was gone, gone because she had broken his heart.

Hermione had denied Harry because she had feared he would break her heart. Instead, she not only broke her own heart but Harry's as well. And now she was forced to live with the consequences of her idiotic actions. She was 28 years old, turning 29 in 18 days, and was sad and alone. She hadn't dated even once since her break-up with Ron even though she had many offers from some very handsome men. She taught Transfiguration at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and lived there year-round. The only times she went off campus regularly were to go to her parents' house for Christmas or somebody's birthday, and even then it was only for two or three days at most.

Her big chance to leave Hogwarts for more than a couple days ended today because today was September 1st, which meant another school year. This was very good for Hermione because it allowed her mind to be focused and not wander to the depressing aspects of life as frequently.

Rolling out of bed, she got ready for the day, making sure to put on her robes instead of muggle clothes.

***GMAC***

Hermione seated herself at the staff table next to Hagrid, who still taught Care of Magical Creatures. "Hello, Hermione."

Hermione smiled at her favorite half-giant. "Hey, Hagrid. Ready for another school year?"

"I sure am!" said Hagrid excitedly. "Did yeh know, Hermione, me and Olympe saw a Nundu in Africa?"

"Really?" said Hermione. "That must have been absolutely terrifying!"

"It wasn't tha' bad, actually," said Hagrid. "It was sleepin'."

"Oh," said Hermione. "Did you—"

At that moment the Great Hall's doors opened to a mass of students. Hermione put a smile on her face along with Hagrid, and quite a few students smiled back. The Gryffindors in particular were keen to smile and even wave up at Hermione, who was their head of house (and a much more likeable one than McGonagall, to say the least). Hermione was glad to see all of the familiar faces and sad that the previous seventh years had graduated. But of course, she would be gaining new house members at the sorting, which was just about due to start at any second.

As soon as the doors opened again the older kids' chatting stopped and the little first years came in behind Professor Lupin, the Deputy Headmaster and the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. Lupin had gained great standing in the wizarding world after it was learned by the general public that he spied on the werewolves led by Fenrir Greyback. He had been reappointed the Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor the year following the war.

The sorting hat sang its song of unity and about the history of the founding of the school while the first years watched on in awe. The rest of the student population watched the first years in awe, wondering if they had really been that small when they were that young.

After the song was finished, Lupin stood up in front of the school and informed the first years that when he called their names, they were expected to sit on the stool and place the sorting hat on their head. Then when they were sorted they were to join their house at their table.

Hermione watched the sorting and applauded each student (applauding a bit louder when a student was sorted into her house) and the sorting passed normally. That is, until Lupin hit the P's.

"Pearson, Robert," he called.

The young boy nervously walked up, sat on the stool, and put the sorting hat on his head.

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Pinkworth, Melissa."

"SLYTHERIN!"

Then Lupin hesitated. He took a deep breath and looked up at the first years, eyebrows furrowed. He gave his head a quick shake, cleared his throat, licked his lips, and shakily said, "P-Potter, Jade."

Hermione quietly gasped, much like everyone else in the hall did before breaking out into hurried whispers. A cute young girl with jet-black hair and beautiful green eyes walked up to the sorting hat a little nervously, though not as nervously as Robert Pearson had.

Hermione barely heard the hat shout "GRYFFINDOR!" over her jumbled thoughts.

Harry has a child? H-How is that even possible, the girl's eleven! The only thing I can think of is adoption, but…the black hair and green eyes…how is this even possible?

Hagrid seemed to have recovered more quickly than Hermione, for he leaned in close to her and whispered, "He musta blood-adopted her."

Hermione blinked at that. Of course, blood-adoption! The adoptee is magically bound to his/her new parent(s), which modifies his/her DNA as if the adopter(s) is actually his/her parent(s). So therefore, Jade Potter would have black hair, green eyes, and most likely very similar traits to those of Harry, including his parseltounge ability.

"Potter, Raven," came Lupin's strong voice again. Another girl that could have been the twin sister of Jade (in fact, Hermione guessed that it most likely was her twin sister) jumped eagerly up the steps to the sorting hat and jammed it on her head.

Meanwhile, Hermione was still staring on in shock.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

As she weakly clapped for Raven, Hermione felt her heart twist uncomfortably in her chest. Harry had adopted two girls. It made perfectly good sense. She had—Hermione took a deep breath through her nose—rejected him, and to keep himself going and not just giving up after having his heart broken, he started his own family so he could be loved.

A small smile made its way onto Hermione's face. At least Harry had found happiness somewhere, he definitely deserved it.

After the sorting had ended and the feast had started, Hermione studied the two girls that bore the last name Potter. They were talking to each other and some other first years around them and giggling and acting like any other 11-year-old girls that attended Hogwarts. But they did seem a little shy, too, acting more nervous when they talked to older students.

It was funny; they were acting very similar to how Harry acted at the beginning-of-term feast in his first year.

It seemed that Hermione had been caught staring, for Raven looked up and caught her eye. Hermione smiled at her, and she smiled back before turning to a prefect close by and asking her a question. She was obviously asking who Hermione was, for Raven pointed at Hermione and the prefect looked right at her before answering the young girl.

Raven stiffened, which caused Hermione's smile to falter a bit, before turning to Jade and whispering something to her and pointing at Hermione. Both girls looked up at Hermione and Jade's eyes widened as Raven's seemed to narrow a bit. Then Jade's expression came to match Raven's. All three of them sat there studying and trying to get a measure of each other as if they were about to face off, and there was indeed a small bit of tension in the air.

Hermione looked away first, looking down at her food. It was obvious from their reactions to the knowledge of who she was that Harry had told them about her, and not everything that he told them were good things.

"So waddya think, Hermione? Do yeh think those two'll be as much of a handful as you three were?" Hagrid asked Hermione, his smile hidden behind his beard.

"Oh, Hagrid," Hermione said, a smile playing on her lips. "We may have been a handful, but life was a handful for us and we had to be more of a handful than it to beat it."

"Aye," said Hagrid somberly. "Tha's true, that is."

A silence fell over them, then Hermione asked, "Hagrid, does this…does this feel a bit…odd, to you?"

"What, teachin' yer best friend's kids?" Hagrid asked, a hint of humor in his voice.

"Yes," replied Hermione, who thought that everything felt surreal at that moment.

"It was fer me my firs' time. But yeh get used ter it, yeh do," replied Hagrid.

"Oh," was all Hermione could say in response.

"Trus' me, Hermione, it's gonna get weirder before it starts ter feel normal again," said Hagrid wisely.

This broke Hermione out of her weird spell and she laughed out loud. "That was very well put, Hagrid." The feast ended and the two teachers stood up. "Tea on Friday as usual?" she asked.

"O' course," replied Hagrid. He began walking away. "I'll see yeh then!" he called over his shoulder.

Hermione shook her head and smiled, then began walking towards her living quarters, which were accessed by going through the staff room to the wall opposite the entrance and stating a password, a different one for each teacher to access their separate, individual living quarters.

Hermione got ready for bed and laid down. As she fell asleep, she couldn't shake the image of the stares from Harry's girls. To Hermione, they seemed to promise retribution for hurting their father so much.

Hermione knew she was in for a rough day tomorrow, and knew, once again, that it was all her fault.

A/N: Oh my gosh! Did anyone see that one coming? If you did, then take 5 house points. And another 5 if you review.

Chapter 3 - Revenge

When Hermione woke up the next morning a smile was on her face.

It was the first day of school! A new year for Hermione to help her young students mature into fine, intelligent citizens by teaching them everything she knew about transfiguration (and a few values and morals here and there of course). She quickly got ready for the day, fueled by her excitement.

She had to contain herself from skipping merrily down to the Great Hall—the students would look at her like she was crazy. When she arrived at her destination, she put some bacon and pancakes (drenched in syrup, of course) on her plate and began eating them with vigor.

But then…then she slowly stopped. She could feel the eyes of somebody on her. Hermione looked up towards the Gryffindor table but saw nobody staring at her. But she did see the two Potter girls smiling and talking with the other first years around them.

Lupin stopped behind the two girls, smiled and introduced himself personally, then gave them their schedules. Jade and Raven glanced at their schedules, looked at each other with wide eyes, looked at Hermione, then quickly looked away when they realized Hermione was already looking at them.

Hermione knew what warranted that reaction, because she knew her own schedule by heart. Today, which was a Monday, Hermione had the Gryffindor and Slytherin first-years in double transfiguration at the end of the school day.

Hopefully the beginning of her day would be easy.

***GMAC***

Hermione, tired to the bone, quickly got the classroom ready for her first years. She didn't know how they had done it, but the seventh years, in the span of an hour, had transfigured the stone floor into a giant pink shag rug, shattered a couple windows, and vanished half of the desks. And today they had only been doing a comprehensive review of the first three years of transfiguration. They definitely had a lot of work to do to become NEWT-ready.

Sighing, Hermione plopped in her chair just as the first students entered the classroom. Over the next five minutes leading up to the bell, Hermione surreptitiously studied all of the students entering the rapidly-filling classroom, checking for Raven and Jade. They didn't make it on time.

But then again, Hogwarts was a big and complex castle—Hermione thought that she would cut them some slack as it was only their first day and they were probably dashing around frantically to find her classroom.

But ten minutes later, right in the middle of Hermione's speech about how important it was to master Transfiguration, Raven and Jade Potter walked into the classroom talking loudly and walking at a leisurely pace.

Hermione, now feeling very unsympathetic and unforgiving, crossed her arms and started tapping her foot, which was always a danger sign. "Nice of you to join us, girls. Can either of you two give me a good reason to not give you detention?"

"No, Professor Granger," replied Raven confidently. Jade, looking a little scared, gave a half-nod/half-shake, relying on her sister to lead. "We knew coming in that we probably would have gotten a detention anyway so decided to just show up a late."

Some of the class giggled and Jade whispered to her sister just loud enough for Hermione to hear, "Raven, I really don't think this is a good idea. Daddy wouldn't like this!"

Raven didn't show any sign that she heard her sister and continued staring defiantly into Hermione's eyes. So she was brave enough to stand up to a teacher and brave enough to stand up for her father—well, nobody could deny that she deserved to be in Gryffindor.

"Five points from Gryffindor for talking back and twenty for your tardiness. And what do you mean, 'we knew coming in that we probably would have gotten a detention anyway'?" asked Hermione a little unprofessionally. She knew that this kind of question should have been asked in private but could not keep her anger from rising at the injustice that Harry had made her out to be a horrible person to his children.

"Well, let's see…hmm…" said Raven sarcastically. Jade seemed to be frozen in place, staring at her sister with concern. "Maybe because you hate our dad?"

Hermione felt her mouth drop open in shock and she had to make an effort to stop her hands from curling into fists. So Harry was lying about her, was he? "I don't hate your father. Now please sit down and take out your wand. If you would like to discuss anything with me, please come to me after class and we will discuss it alone. If you make a scene in my class again I will have no choice but to give you a detention," Hermione said in a matter-of-fact way that would have made Headmistress McGonagall proud.

Hermione turned around and faced the board to give herself time to collect herself. She took a few deep breaths, but the whole class started laughing and she whipped around to see Raven sitting on the ground, pulling on Jade's hand to get her sister to join her. Jade glanced between Hermione and her sister, stuck out her chin defiantly, and plopped on the ground next to Raven, who smirked smugly.

Unfortunately for Jade and Raven, it was Hermione who held authority in her classroom and Merlin help the fools who disobeyed her. "Detention, both of you, after school." Jade's lower lip quivered a little but she stayed seated. Raven just kept smirking. "Now please sit in your seats or it will be a week's detention." Hermione smiled sweetly at Raven, whose smirk slid off her face. Jade glanced at her sister, picked up her stuff, and bolted to her seat. Hermione could see Jade wiping the tears off her face and tried not to let it affect her—the only reason she was being punished was because she was sticking by her sister. She would have to have a few words with Raven this evening.

Raven sighed loudly, picked up her stuff, and slowly started walking towards the seat next to Jade. "Excuse me, Miss Potter," Hermione said sternly. "Where do you think you're going?"

Raven looked at Hermione like she was stupid. "Er…to sit next to my sister," she said a bit slowly.

Hermione shook her head. "Front row, right in front of my desk," she said. Her desk was located in the front left corner of the room, which was on the very opposite side of the room from her sister.

Raven sighed, gave her sister a quirky smile, and walked up to the front of the classroom, where she unceremoniously dropped her bag on the floor and sat in the chair.

Now that that drama was over, Hermione walked up to the front of the classroom and transfigured a brick into a magnificent bouquet of roses, earning impressed ooh's and aah's from the class. "Now, obviously you won't be starting off with anything that difficult. That was actually OWL level, which you will be taking in your fifth year. Now, please—"

A loud scraping sound cut off what she was going to say next, and Hermione closed her eyes before opening them again and looking towards her desk, where Raven, who was sitting there innocently, had scooted hers up so the two were touching. Most of the class was snickering, and Hermione knew she needed to stop this now, before it got out of hand. "What are you doing, Miss Potter?"

"You told me to sit right in front of your desk, Professor Granger," said Raven innocently, earning a couple chuckles from the class.

"Would you please come here, Miss Potter?" Hermione asked Raven, who stood up and began walking over to her. "No, with your belongings please, you won't be returning during this period."

The class instantly shut up and the only sounds in the room were of Raven packing her stuff up. She looked unaffected as she walked back up to Hermione, who conjured a note in her hand and handed it to Raven, meeting her challenging stare. "You can read it on your way to Headmistress McGonagall's office. I've always encouraged my students to read," she informed Raven. Raven turned around and began walking towards the door. "And don't forget about your detention," Hermione called to her back.

***GMAC***

Raven Potter closed the Transfiguration room's door behind her and began walking towards Headmistress McGonagall's office on shaky legs. She looked down at the note in her hand.

Headmistress McGonagall,

I am displeased to inform you on the first day of term that Miss Potter and her younger sister repeatedly disrupted my class. Miss Jade Potter stopped after receiving a detention, but Miss Raven Potter continued. She too will serve a detention today with her sister, but I am deferring the rest of the punishment to you, as threat of detention does not seem to be enough to deter her.

My recommended punishment would be to contact her father and let him discipline his daughter, as I am quite sure that he would be upset at her behavior and would like a say in her punishment.

Thank you,

Professor Granger

Raven stopped in her tracks and leaned back against the nearest wall, her hands trembling violently. They were going to contact her father? Raven knew for a fact that her dad would be upset and worst of all…disappointed. And she knew that Professor Granger had nothing on her dad.

Harry had always stressed that he wished for them to be nice to everybody and that they should behave at school because school was very important, and here she goes and gets in so much trouble in her first day that they were going to contact him.

Her dad had never been anything but proud of his two daughters, and Raven knew that today was going to be the first day that he wasn't.

Raven's legs collapsed from under her, making her sink down the wall, and she buried her head in her hands and cried.

***GMAC***

Hermione had just dismissed the class when Raven came back in, head held high. "Sit down at your desk, Miss Potter," said Hermione in a no-nonsense tone.

Jade was sitting in the desk next to Raven's and the two girls caught each other's eye as Raven sat down.

Hermione held out two hand-held scrapers to the girls." I always save a special treat for the first detention of the year. You two get to scrape the gum off the bottom of the desks, which haven't been cleaned since the beginning of last year when the first student in detention did the same job you two are about to do."

"Yay," replied Raven unenthusiastically.

Hermione noticed that her eyes had a faint red tinge around them, like she had been crying earlier. Good, thought Hermione, maybe she'll think twice about breaking the rules again.

The only sounds in the room for the next two hours were the sounds of gum being scraped off desks and Hermione's quill scratching against the pop quizzes she was grading.

After every desk was scraped, the two girls handed in their tools and Hermione said, "Now, I wish to speak to each of you alone."

Raven stepped out first, leaving Hermione to study Jade, who was looking at her shoes.

"Miss Potter, I must ask you, why did you go along with your sister?" asked Hermione of the young girl.

"B-because I love her and I want to be more like her," replied Jade, the pace of her speaking increasing as her confidence grew. "She's so much more brave and confident than me, and…and I wish I was like that," she finished in a quiet voice.

Hermione mulled that one over, then finally said, "Why are you trying to be something you're not? That's what makes being a human great! We get to be whoever we want to be, experience life in our own way! Embrace the differences between you and your sister, they're what make you who you are!"

Jade continued looking at her shoes.

"Now, can I ask you one more question?" Hermione asked rhetorically. "Why don't you like me?"

Jade may have been more like her sister than she thought, for she whipped her head up and snarled, "Because you make my daddy sad," before picking up her stuff and storming from the room.

A crazy thought passed through Hermione's mind. Maybe Harry didn't tell them what happened. If not, then these are some pretty smart girls here.

Raven entered and came to stand in front of Hermione's desk.

"Was it worth it?" came out of Hermione's mouth before she could stop herself.

"Of course it was worth it," Raven tried to snap, but the effect was ruined by the tremble in her voice.

"It was so important to you that you had to take advantage of your sister, who got a detention on her first day at Hogwarts because she looks up to you?" asked Hermione quietly.

Raven looked away. "She wanted to do it too. I was just there to help her get the courage," Raven said with little conviction.

"You really shouldn't do that to her," Hermione said. "It's not fair to her. If I were you, I'd apologize."

"If I apologize, I'll do it because I want to, not because you told me to," said Raven defiantly.

Hermione had to contain a smile. They were just so…so much like Harry.

"Very well, you may go," said Hermione, reclining in her chair. But Raven didn't move. "Miss Potter? You're dismissed."

Raven picked up her stuff and slowly stood up before looking Hermione in the eye and asking icily, "Was it worth it?"

Hermione waited until the door was shut before putting her head in her arms and crying.

A/N: Ahh, poor Hermione. Reduced to tears by an eleven-year-old. Next chapter comes big, bad Harry.

Please Review, it really means a lot to me to know your thoughts!

Chapter 4 – Confrontations

Harry angrily strode through the front doors of Hogwarts castle, a letter from Headmistress McGonagall clutched in his fist.

Dear Mr. Potter,

It is my regret to inform you that both of your daughters were disruptive in transfiguration class today and received detention. Miss Jade Potter stopped misbehaving, but Miss Raven Potter continued. Therefore, we request your presence tonight at 7:00 PM in the hope that you may be able to help us resolve this issue.

Thank you for your time,

Headmistress McGonagall

Harry couldn't believe it. His two angels had never misbehaved before. They were very good girls and Harry was always proud of them.

After being rejected by Hermione, he had moved away immediately to the southern part of England and after a month of being lonely, decided to blood-adopt a child. He went to an orphanage that only housed the children of witches and wizards and met many children, but instantly fell in love with Raven and Jade, who were twin sisters.

So, a couple hours and plenty of signed forms later, 9-year-olds Raven and Jade were Potters and timidly exploring the new Potter Mansion with Harry, who was giving them a tour. Over the next few years, the three grew into a proper family and loved each other very much, with Harry telling them stories of his, Ron's, and Hermione's adventures in Hogwarts.

Although Hermione had broken his heart, Raven and Jade were there to mend it and he was quickly back to normal. The only pang of sadness came whenever he spoke of Hermione to the girls, and although he tried to not let it show, Raven and Jade were both very intelligent and observant and he knew that they knew that Hermione had done something to make him sad.

Something that was definitely not helping Harry's mood was all of the students holding out parchments and random objects to be signed. But Harry had dealt with it before and chose to use his best tactic: just ignore it. Headmistress McGonagall appeared at the end of the Entrance Hall and cried, "Shoo! Shoo! All of you, into the Great Hall for dinner or you'll be receiving detention!"

With much grumbling and quite a few foot-stamps, the students reluctantly complied with Headmistress McGonagall's command. McGonagall then walked up to Harry and gave him one of her rare smiles. "So good to see you, Harry."

"And you, Professor McGonagall," replied Harry amiably.

"Oh please, Harry. I feel old enough as it is with the children calling me professor! Can't you do an old woman a favor and call me Minerva?" asked McGonagall, who seemed to have changed a bit since Harry had last seen her.

"Of course, Minerva. I just wish we weren't meeting again on such bad news," replied Harry.

"Ah, yes. Raven and Jade," replied McGonagall, who seemed to be deep in thought. "It's quite odd, actually. They behaved perfectly well in their other classes today. I don't understand what happened; all of the other professors loved them!"

"Er…Hermione is the transfiguration professor, unless I'm mistaken?" asked Harry, who had an eyebrow raised.

"You are correct," replied McGonagall as she led Harry toward her office. "Why would that be a problem?"

"Oh, it's nothing," said Harry. "Let me just have a word with my girls in private. I'll have this sorted out in no time," replied Harry.

"I trust that you will," said Minerva, who had stopped outside of her office and said, "Spotted Tabby," to the stone gargoyle, which leapt aside to reveal the staircase to McGonagall's office.

Harry stood on the top step and rode it to the top, then took a deep breath before opening the doors and stepping in. Raven and Jade were sitting in front of McGonagall's desk but facing Harry, who conjured a chair a few feet in front of them. His two girls were looking at their feet.

They sat in silence for a couple minutes until Harry quietly said, "Do either of you have anything to say for yourselves?"

Raven looked up and said, "It was my fault, dad. Jade wouldn't have done anything if it weren't for me."

Jade looked up sharply. "No, daddy! It was both of us." She glared at her sister. "We deserve equal punishment."

"But according to your professor, you stopped, Jade," said Harry.

"Yeah, b-but…" stuttered Jade, who sighed and gave up.

There were a couple more minutes of silence before Harry broke it again. "I'm very disappointed in the both of you. I expected better from you two."

When Raven looked up again she had tears in her eyes. "I'm sorry, dad."

"You shouldn't be apologizing to me," said Harry. "I expect you two to apologize to Professor Granger tomorrow. And I'll know if you haven't." Raven and Jade glanced at each other. "And now, the question that I really want answered. Why Professor Granger? You two behaved perfectly in the rest of your classes." Harry reclined in his chair to wait for their response.

"You know those stories you tell us about when you were in Hogwarts?" asked Raven.

"Yes," said Harry, pretty sure where this was going.

"Well, whenever you talk about Professor Granger, you get really sad. We thought, well…" trailed off Raven.

"You thought she hurt me? You thought that you would get her back for me?" asked Harry, arching an eyebrow.

Both girls nodded.

Harry sighed. "As much as I appreciate the sentiment, even if I wanted to 'get back at Hermione' I would do it myself. You guys just need to worry about yourselves, okay?" They both nodded. "And for the record, well…it's actually my fault we aren't friends anymore."

Both girls' heads snapped up, shocked. "W-what?" stuttered Jade.

"I made a mistake, and because of it I ran away and didn't talk to her again. The fault is completely mine," said Harry heavily.

"But weren't you two best friends?" asked Jade. "Why didn't you try to talk to her again?"

"Well," said Harry, scratching his head, "it's really complicated, but basically…I was scared. Scared that she would hate me."

Raven and Jade looked at each other in shock. They had never seen their dad scared before.

Harry sighed again. "Okay, now its time for the hard part. Punishment." Raven and Jade looked at each other gloomily. "Well, Raven, I hope this talk we had will stop you from continuing to misbehave, but you did keep going after the first detention, so you still need to be punished. So…I think you should have detention with Professor Granger for the rest of the week and if you disrupt her class again this month you'll receive a suspension." Harry gave her a minute to let that sink in.

"I guess that's only fair," said Raven.

"What about me, daddy?" asked Jade.

"You served your punishment already, didn't you?" asked Harry.

"But I already told you that it was my fault too!" cried Jade. "It's not fair to Raven if you only punish her!"

Harry had to hold back a smile. He loved them so much and it made him happy when they stuck up for each other. It made him wish he had a sibling.

"If you're sure…" said Harry. Jade nodded vigorously. "Alright, you'll be joining Raven in her detentions, then." Harry stood up. "Well, that settles that. And I mean it when I say that you two are going to apologize to Professor Granger tomorrow."

"Okay," they said simultaneously.

"And always remember that I love you guys and I'm only an owl away, okay?" said Harry, crouching down and holding out his arms.

Raven and Jade both hugged him, saying, "Love you too, daddy."

Harry stood up, hiding the tears in his eyes. It would (most likely) be three months until he saw them again.

"Alright, girls. You better behave, or I'm taking back your Christmas presents," Harry joked before leaving the office. Harry stopped before going down to McGonagall to give himself a minute to smile.

They would be alright.

***GMAC***

Hermione checked her watch—it read 7:25 PM. She had five minutes until she was supposed to meet Headmistress McGonagall to discuss what Raven's punishment was going to be.

She liked to get to meetings early, but grading the papers had taken much longer than she thought it would due to the fact that her mind kept wandering to what Raven had asked her today before leaving. It was like she had reopened the wound, and Hermione constantly found herself on the verge of tears for the rest of the day.

She turned a corner and walked right into somebody, making her fall over backwards. She quickly scrambled to her feet, face beet red, and said, "Oh my gosh, I'm so—"

She stopped short as she saw who she had walked into. Her breathing picked up and her heart fluttered in her chest. It had been so long since she had seen him, and he looked as handsome as ever.

Harry seemed to recover himself first. "Sorry about that. Please excuse me."

Hermione felt her heart twist in her chest as he walked past her without another word. 15 years of friendship, gone. Her chance to be with Harry, gone. She hoped that when they saw each other again, they might at least chat and perhaps Hermione could finally confess her feelings to him. And now here she was…watching Harry walk away…again. Well, this time she wouldn't let him. This time, she would do things differently.

"Harry!" she cried, and felt relief when Harry stopped and turned around.

Hermione slowly walked up to him and stopped right in front of him, her heart pounding in her chest. "How are you?"

Harry looked taken aback. "I-I'm good. Excellent. I forgot, I wanted to apologize for my daughters' behavior. Believe me, I'm astounded that they would do such a thing."

Hermione said, "It's alright. I've seen much worse, believe me."

"A-and how are you?" asked Harry.

"Great. The beginning of the school year is the best day of the year," replied Hermione. She scolded herself mentally. Enough of the small talk, just do it already! "Harry, I want to tell you something."

"Look, you don't have to apologize. None of it was your fault. You love Ron, not me. That's cool, it's fine. Let's just get over it and move on. I-I've missed you," said Harry.

"I've missed you too," said Hermione, her heart fluttering again. "But that's not what I wanted to tell you."

"Oh, wait," interrupted Harry. "Are you and Ron married yet?"

"Ummm…no, we kind of…broke up a week after you left," said Hermione. "Because what I really should have said was—"

Harry's watch beeped and he looked down at it in alarm. "7:45 already? Oh man, Hermione, I'm sorry but I have to go. I was supposed to pick up my girlfriend 15 minutes ago." Hermione felt her heart shatter in her chest and she stopped breathing. "I'll…uh, I'll see you around, yeah?" Harry started walking away.

"Yeah, sure," Hermione replied weakly.

But Hermione knew that Harry wouldn't go out of his way to talk to her. That conversation they had just had felt too weird. It was like they were just acquaintances.

Hermione watched Harry turn the corner leading to the Entrance Hall, then sighed and continued on to Professor McGonagall's office.

They were awkward around each other and Harry had a girlfriend. Hermione felt tears gather in her eyes as she realized that Harry had moved on and didn't love her anymore, their friendship was completely wrecked, and it was all her fault.

Because what I really should have said was I love you too, Harry.

A/N: Both of them have really bad luck, don't they?

Please Review, it really means a lot to me!

A/N: Sorry for the wait! I promise to update sooner next chapter!

Chapter 5 – Apologies and Confessions

Hermione didn't have Gryffindor first years on Tuesday, so she didn't see Raven and Jade until after school. They entered the classroom five minutes after the final bell rang, both avoiding looking at their professor.

"Come in girls, and please sit in the front rows," said Hermione.

Raven and Jade wordlessly walked up to the front, dropped their belongings unceremoniously on the ground, and sat in their seats.

"As it is the beginning of the school year," Hermione began, "There isn't much cleaning to be done, which would be the usual punishment that I would give you. Instead," Hermione flicked her wand and several filing cabinets appeared in the classroom, "You'll be hand-copying these records of rule-breakers and their punishments. As you can see, they are fading, so they are in need of being rewritten," Hermione finished.

"Yes, Professor Granger," said Raven sullenly before opening a drawer at random and taking out a stack of cards.

Jade did the same and in no time at all the room was filled with the sound of scratching quills: the two students copying the records and Hermione correcting more quizzes. Two hours and three sore wrists later, Hermione set her quill down and said, "That's enough for today girls, just put your cards back in, mark your place for tomorrow, and you can see yourself out."

Hermione went back to grading the quizzes, not looking back up until she heard the shuffling of feet in front of her desk. She looked up slowly, hating herself for being afraid of Raven hurting her again. When she made eye contact with Raven, who was standing in front of Jade, she firmly asked "Yes?" so as to not show her fear.

"Professor Granger," began Raven, "I would like to apologize for my behavior in your class yesterday." Hermione was dazed and confused at the same time. "It was unacceptable of me and I sincerely hope you can forgive me."

"I'm sorry too, Professor Granger," Jade said from Raven's side. "It was wrong of us to disrupt your class and to disrespect you in front of the other students."

Hermione took a second to admire Harry's parenting skills. She always knew he would be a good father. "It's quite alright, girls," she said warmly. "I just hope that it never happens again."

Both Raven and Jade seemed to relax a bit now that the task was finished and they actually smiled at Hermione before Jade said, "It won't, Professor Granger. We promise."

Raven nodded somewhat enthusiastically before turning around and walking out of the classroom with Jade, and this time Hermione waited until the door was shut to smile.

***GMAC***

The next day, Hermione had the Gryffindor first years again, and she could see why all of the other professors confessed that the two Potter girls were their favorite students.

They were organized, they were smart, and they weren't afraid to raise their hands in class. They really did seem to be the brightest of the first years. Quite frankly, they reminded Hermione of herself at that age except for the fact that they had made friends without having to have a near-death bonding experiencing by fighting a fully-grown troll.

And so Hermione actually found herself regretting that they had to serve detention after school again. Hermione knew that Harry had sorted them out, they really didn't need these detentions any longer. And despite the fact that they seemed to be the brightest of their year they did share traits with Harry, which meant that they probably needed as much time as they could get for their homework.

So when the girls stayed after school and sat in their front seats, Hermione said, "I believe that you two really have learned your lesson. Unfortunately, you must still serve your detentions. But instead of doing menial, time-consuming tasks, I will allow you two to quietly work on your homework."

Jade smiled at Hermione and said, "Thanks, Professor Granger!"

Raven didn't smile but said the same and once again the room was filled with the sound of scratching quills.

Hermione finished grading her fifth years' essays by the hour mark. She really didn't have much to do, and usual when that happened, she found her mind wandering to Harry.

She closed her eyes and found herself drifting off to the past, reliving her days in Hogwarts. Fighting trolls, drinking polyjuice potion, turning time, secretly practicing for the Triwizard Tournament, infiltrating the ministry. Then she thought about some of the less hectic and stress related times. Basking in the sun by the lake, goofing off in class (not that she ever partook in any of the goofing off, of course), watching Harry flying loops around the Quidditch pitch, eyes darting in every direction looking for the snitch.

Then she was on Harry's broom with him right behind her, and they were flying in the air over the school enjoying the beautiful sights. And oddly, despite the fact that she was in the air, she wasn't afraid. Harry was there, nothing was going to happen to her with him right there.

"Do you want to get down, Hermione? I know how much you hate flying," said Harry's smooth, deep voice.

"No," said Hermione. "I changed my mind—I really like flying."

"Professor Granger?"

Hermione furrowed her brow. What happened to Harry? Why did he sound like a girl?

"Harry, why are you calling me Professor Granger? And what's wrong with your voice?" asked Hermione, who was thoroughly perplexed.

"Professor Granger?" Harry's little girl voice asked a bit more sharply.

"What?" Hermione mumbled groggily as she opened her eyes.

"Professor Granger, are you alright?" asked Raven.

As Hermione realized where she was she blushed to the roots of her hair. How could she fall asleep when two students were serving detention in her classroom? She was absolutely mortified. "Erm…yes, I'm quite alright," Hermione responded with mock-calmness.

"Are you sure?" asked Jade, who looked more amused than worried. "Because you were talking about flying and our dad."

Hermione felt her face turn a deeper shade of red. "Your father was very good at flying, I'll have you know. Youngest seeker in a century, and he never failed to catch the snitch…well, except for that one time the dementors attacked him, but that doesn't really count." Hermione was doing what she always did when she was nervous or embarrassed—spouting facts.

"We know," said Jade. "Uncle Draco told us all about it. We're both going to try out on the team as Chasers."

Hermione did a double-take. "Uncle Draco?" Last time Hermione had checked, the rivalry had been as solid as ever. Apparently a lot had changed in the last three years. "But Malfoy and Harry hated each other!" Hermione exclaimed half to herself.

"Yeah, they did," said Raven. "But our dad and Uncle Draco were bidding for ownership of the Appleby Arrows and instead of having to pay a really high price, they decided to buy the team together. And then they just kind of became friends," Raven finished simply.

Hermione took a second to collect herself. All of this new information from the past week was doing her head in. Once she had calmed down, she asked, "What does your father do for a living?" This was really quite unprofessional of her, but Hermione couldn't help but be curious.

"He's a businessman," replied Raven. "He owns Potter Manor, which is our home, and invests his money into businesses so he can make more money. At least, that's how dad explained it to us."

So Harry had truly become Lord Potter. This next question Hermione couldn't help but ask. "And who's his girlfriend?"

"Hannah Abbot," Jade practically spat out.

Harry was dating Hannah Abbot, eh? The little blonde Hufflepuff bint, Hermione thought to herself savagely. What did Harry see in her, anyway? He had never expressed any interest in her at school. Hermione mentally shook her head and refocused on the conversation. "You don't seem to like her very much."

"We don't," Raven replied angrily. "She's mean and annoying. But then when she's around our dad, she becomes the perfect girlfriend. We tried telling dad once, but he got pretty angry and told us to be nice to her." Raven then grumbled, "As if we would do that when he wasn't around."

"We think that Hannah is only our dad's girlfriend because he's really famous," Jade said.

Funny, that's exactly what I was thinking, thought Hermione to herself. The three sat stewing in their own thoughts for a while before Raven asked, "Er…Professor Granger? You don't have to answer this, but…what happened between you and dad?"

Hermione looked down at her hands, unwilling to meet the two girls' eyes. Their tentative and newly-formed bond would probably crumble following this revelation. But Hermione was taught to never lie, and she thought it would be particularly heinous if she did so to her own students when she was teaching them the same thing.

"Your father came to me one night…and he…he confessed his love to me," Hermione admitted. Both girls' jaws dropped. "I, being a supreme idiot, rejected him," Hermione said.

Raven and Jade's looks of shock surprisingly became looks of curiosity. "Why?" asked Raven. "You didn't love him back?"

"That's the thing!" exclaimed Hermione. "I do love him! I did love him! I've always loved him!" Wow, Hermione thought to herself, the first people you tell this to are Harry's eleven-year-old twin daughters. "I made a mistake. It was all my fault."

Raven and Jade looked wide-eyed at each other before Jade said, "That's weird. Our dad said the same thing."

"He did?" asked Hermione, confused.

"He thinks that he was the one who made a mistake," said Raven.

Hermione felt her heart break even more than she did the night she realized that she had made a mistake in saying no to Harry. He hadn't really loved her? Was she just a passing fancy, a simple crush?

"So…so he didn't love me?" asked Hermione quietly.

"Are you kidding me?" asked Raven. "Of course he loves you!"

"He told you?" Hermione asked Raven.

"No," responded Jade. "But it's pretty obvious." Raven nodded emphatically.

"What do you mean?" asked Hermione.

"I don't know, really," said Raven. "But…when he talks about you, you just know, I guess." This time Jade nodded along with her sister's words.

Well, thought Hermione, if two eleven-year-olds can see it, I'm guessing it must be there. Merlin, I can't believe that I'm spilling out my heart to and getting advice about my love life from Harry's daughters. Hermione looked down at her watch. It read 6:15 PM. The girls' detentions had finished at five. "You two better get going, it's already 6:15, dinner will be ready soon."

"Bye, Professor Granger," Raven and Jade called over their shoulders as they headed for the exit.

"Have a good night, and I'll see you tomorrow!" Hermione called back as the door was shutting.

It was strange, but telling somebody how she felt really took a load off her chest. Maybe I shouldn't be as hard on psychologists, Hermione thought to herself as she made her way to the door of classroom.

***GMAC***

As Raven and Jade made their way to Gryffindor tower, they looked at each other and raised an eyebrow simultaneously. They were twins, they knew that they were thinking the same thing.

It was about time that Hannah Abbot was out and Hermione Granger was in.

A/N: I hope you liked it, especially considering the fact that I went a little more light-hearted with this chapter. This was sort of the fun and happiness before it gets all serious and dramatic.

And please remember to Review. Your input really means a lot to me!

A/N: As promised, here’s the new chapter up earlier than the last one! Just to let you all know, this story is completely written and tops out at about 30,000 words.

Please enjoy!

Chapter 6 – The Hag, The Jesters, and The Princess

Hannah Abbot sat across from her boyfriend of four months at the fanciest restaurant in the Wizarding World, Incendio, examining her perfectly manicured nails.

Hannah had been a somewhat quiet, shy girl in her days at Hogwarts. She only hung out with members of her house and it was her personal mission to be nice to everybody she met and knew as long as they didn't show open animosity towards her. And, of course, like the rest of the school, she had had a crush on Harry Potter.

But she didn't like him because he was rich and famous. She wasn't even the slightest bit attracted to him until 6th year, when all of the quidditch had paid off and given him a nice body. Throw in the messy hair and an aura of niceness and he was her dream man.

And in April he had asked her out to the very restaurant they were sitting in now.

She had accepted his invitation, of course, and was awed by the amount of admiration that Harry received. After that, it all went downhill (or uphill, in her eyes).

The night after the date, a reporter from the Daily Prophet came and interviewed her about herself and her date with Harry. The article was featured in the paper the very next day and random witches and wizards in the streets greeted her and questioned her.

At first she was frightened and hesitant about all the attention she was receiving, but Harry assured her that she would be fine and she trusted him. She gradually became used to being famous and, over a bit more time, came to crave it. But she hadn't hit rock-bottom yet.

It actually happened the next day, when Hannah was searching Harry's office for his misplaced glasses. She came across his reports and peeked inside. What she saw nearly made her heart stop. He was worth over 150 million galleons (approximately 1.25 billion U.S. dollars). At this point, Hannah was officially in love with Harry Potter's fame and money.

She felt that she definitely deserved to spend his money—putting up with his brat twin daughters, always snooping around and looking at her suspiciously, was a severe trial on her patience (and in her mind, her health).

At least the two were Hogwarts age now and could leave her and Harry's wallet alone. Now that Harry wasn't bogged down at home watching the two nuisances (he claimed that he loved them and enjoyed spending time with them, but Hannah knew better, for who would want to spend time with banes of her existence?) it meant that she could also be more freely out and about, and she planned to use that privilege wisely. In fact, she already had a spa treatment and shopping spree completely planned out for tomorrow. She was planning the final details in her head as she pretended to listen to Harry talk about those bloody girls again, going on about how wonderful they were.

"I can't believe that they're actually eleven and attending Hogwarts!" Harry said enthusiastically.

"Mmhmm," Hannah mumbled.

"I also don't know…was I… was I too hard on them for their punishments?" asked Harry nervously. "I mean, suspension is a pretty big deal just for disrupting class."

"Yeah," said Hannah, her mind silently debating on whether she should go with three-inch heels or four.

"But I'm sure they won't do it again," said Harry, still obviously a bit concerned. "They're good girls, they just made a mistake and now they know better."

"Mmm," Hannah mumbled again. She had decided on the four-inch heels, but now she was trying to choose the right color. Red or black?

Harry calmed down a bit and said, "They told me to keep this a secret, but…they're both trying out for the quidditch team," Harry said, obviously pleased.

"Wow," said Hannah, who was basing her responses solely on the tone of Harry's voice. The black would look better with her altered dress robes, but the red would look sexy with her halter top.

"So what do you think? You think they'll make it?" Harry asked, unable to contain his excitement stemming from the joys of watching his children grow up.

Then Hannah's mind solved the problem. "Both!" she exclaimed. He was worth over 150 million galleons—buying both would be no problem at all!

"I think so too," said Harry. "Raven is a bit more aggressive than Jade, but Jade definitely has her finer skills mastered better." Harry's eyes clouded over a bit and he went into a state of mind similar to that of his girlfriend. "I wonder what they're doing right now."

***GMAC***

Raven and Jade were sitting in the Gryffindor Common room with their best friends. Scorpius Malfoy, who received a long letter from his father after he was sorted into Gryffindor stating that he still loved him even though he was a part of, in Draco's eyes, the worst house in Hogwarts, had his father's regal looks along with his platinum-blond hair, but seemed to be less cunning and more stubborn and hard-headed. And Teddy Lupin was the master prankster of the group—being a metamorphmagus definitely had its advantages.

The four had decided on day one of the school year that they were going to be the best pranksters in the whole school. It helped that three of them were descended from the original group. They hadn't quite done anything yet, but they were definitely planning to.

That is, until the conversation that Raven and Jade had had with Professor Granger that day in detention. The twins had been surprised when they learned the finer details of their dad's and professor's falling out, and they had decided to make both of them see the light and get over themselves (and get rid of Hannah Abbot, of course).

Raven and Jade knew that they were going to need help though, and they knew just who to rely on.

"Alright, I officialy call this meeting of the Marauders open," Raven said from her chair in the circle they had made.

Scorpius snorted. "That was lame, Raven. We're a group of four, not a group of four hundred."

Raven balled her hands into fists. "I was just making it official! I thought someone should."

As Scorpius went on a rant, Jade and Teddy caught each other's eye at the same time and rolled their eyes simultaneously. Every day it was like this.

Scorpius instantly became friends with Raven and Jade the first time they met when they were nine, but seemed to like contradicting everything Raven said. Teddy had just joined the group on the train to school but already seemed to fit nicely, adding another coolheaded member to balance out the two hotheaded ones.

"And why are we calling them meetings?" asked Scorpius. "It seems kind of weird that we're now calling the time we hang out 'meetings.'"

Raven made an annoyed sound in the back of her throat. "I'm not calling them meetings, you git. I'm calling this one a meeting because we actually have something important to talk about."

"Oh we do, do we?" Scorpius asked rhetorically. "And just what is so important that we have to call this a meeting?"

"I'm getting to that," bit out Raven through clenched teeth. "If you'd shut your big mouth for two seconds, then you'd hear it."

Teddy cut off Scorpius before he could respond. "Go on then, Raven, tell us what it is!"

"Well, it's a really long story, but basically…me and Jade's dad and Professor Granger are in love with each other," Raven said simply.

"Ewww," said Scorpius. "Your dad's in love with one of our professors!"

Raven just sighed and moved on. "My point is that they aren't friends anymore and don't know that the other loves them. Professor Granger might know now, but our dad certainly doesn't," Raven finished, obviously thinking that her point was made.

This time, though, Teddy had a question. "So…well…are you saying that you're going to do something about it?"

"Actually," said Jade, "we're going to do something about it. Because…well…we need your help and we want to make our daddy happy."

"What about Hannah?" Scorpius teased.

Raven just sighed again. Scorpius knew full well what Raven and Jade's views on Hannah were, and quite frankly, he shared them.

"So what do you guys say?" asked Jade. "Will you help us?"

"Of course," said Teddy. "You guys are my friends."

Jade and Raven smiled at him. Scorpius frowned. "I don't know. This love stuff seems kind of lame to me."

Raven looked over at Jade and smirked just the smallest bit. "Well, if you can't do it…"

"I never said I couldn't do it," said Scorpius, temper rising again. "I just said that it's lame."

"Well I think that's just an excuse," said Raven, challenging him.

Scorpius glared at Raven, returning her challenge, then finally said, "Fine. I'll prove it to you. I'll do it." He smirked. "This is going to be a piece of cake."

As Scorpius sat there smirking, the other three shared a secret grin. They could do it if they all worked together.

"So," said Teddy. "What's the plan?"

Raven blanched and looked at Jade, who was looking back at her with the same expression on her face. "Er…well…we don't exactly have one yet."

"Then we'll come up with one!" said Scorpius triumphantly. "Each member's task for this week is to come up with at least one plan." When no objections were raised, he continued. "I now call this meeting officialy to a close!"

Raven winced. "Wow, you were right, Scorpius, that did sound pretty lame."

"Shut up," Scorpius snapped.

***GMAC***

Hermione lay in bed with a cup of tea on her nightstand, relishing in the warmth of the blanket on her lap as she attempted to read a book.

Unfortunately, her mind was on overdrive and she couldn't help dissecting the conversation between her and Harry's twins during their detention earlier that day.

Was what they said true? Could Harry really still be in love with her?

She desperately wanted the answer to be yes and her heart said yes, but her brain was giving her a resounding no.

For how could Harry still be in love with her after what happened that night? And then there was the three years of not seeing each other—that definitely had to have had a negative effect on their relationship.

Plus, he was now dating someone. Hannah Abbot, to be precise.

Hermione hadn't dated once since she broke up with Ron because she knew that her heart belonged to Harry. Yet Harry was dating. Was that just another thing to add to her list of why Harry was no longer in love with her?

Probably.

But then again, if Harry thought that there was absolutely zero chance of being with her, then it would make sense that he moved on. Hermione knew she would never do that because she was so stubborn that she would never admit defeat no matter the odds, but Harry was a bit less stubborn (but only by a little).

Wait a second, thought Hermione. That's exactly what I'm doing now though, isn't it? I'm admitting defeat! I never admit defeat! What's happening to me?

If only she could show her seventh years how confusing love was, then they would be grateful for the relative ease of their NEWTs.

Hermione put out the torch and snuggled under the blankets, pulling them all the way up to her chin. When she closed her eyes she saw Harry's face, and she spoke out loud:

"I swear, Harry, that I will tell you how I feel, no matter the consequences."

Because that's what he had done with her, right? It only seemed fitting that she do the same.

And then it was all up to him. It was all up to how he would answer.

Her deepest desire was for him to rejoice and kiss her and tell her that he never stopped loving her. A smile graced her lips as she fell asleep thinking this.

She had a nightmare that night. Right before she woke up, nightmare-Harry said, "I'm sorry Hermione, but I'm in love and always have been in love with Hannah."

A/N: Okay, so I wrote this while I was half-asleep. I hope it isn't complete crap. I mostly just built towards the main plot of the story, so I think I'm okay.

I did push up Teddy's birthday a year and Scorpius's numerous years. All that means is that Draco had his kid right after his seventh year of Hogwarts.

As usual, please leave a Review, they really mean a lot to me!

A/N: Here it is—the next installment! Please Enjoy!

Chapter 7 – Finished Before it Started

Throughout the week of Raven and Jade's detentions, they spent the time talking about Harry. The girls found it interesting to hear their dad's stories from a different point of view and Hermione enjoyed hearing about Harry's last three years with the girls. Although the twins were different in several aspects once you got to know them, they really were just like Harry.

Jade was Harry's quiet and reserved side, like when he first came to Hogwarts or when it came to asking a girl to the Yule Ball.

Raven, on the other hand, was Harry's bold side. She seemed to like to lead and act without thinking more often than Jade. Raven reminded Hermione of Harry leading the DA or leading their small group in the ministry battle.

Hermione found herself a little sad when the girls' detentions were over because she found their company much more enjoyable than grading papers or reading. It was like talking to two little female Harrys.

On Friday, she sent them off with a, "Feel free to pop in any time if you wish to speak about anything!"

Little did she know, the girls were just as sad to see their detentions end.

They found her fascinating and looked up to her as a female role model—she was much better than Hannah Abbot—because she was intelligent and witty, much like themselves.

As they left Hermione's classroom Friday afternoon, the twins looked at each other and simultaneously said, "We have to get them together."

Their dad and Hermione had to get together and it had to happen now. But first, they needed a way to get Hannah Abbot out of the picture. They knew that it would be more difficult to get Hannah to break up with their dad than it would to make their dad break up with Hannah, so they would focus on him. But for that they needed a plan.

Therefore, on Saturday at noon, another meeting of the Marauders was called to order. "Okay," said Raven, "Jade and I both have plans to get rid of Hannah Abbot, do you?"

"Wait," said Scorpius, "I thought we were getting your dad and Professor Granger together."

"We are," replied Raven. "But to do that we have to get Hannah out of the way first."

"Well why didn't you tell me that?" demanded Scorpius. "I don't have a plan to get rid of Hannah!"

"We thought it was obvious!" exclaimed Raven. "Teddy, you knew we would have to get rid of Hannah first, right?"

"Of course. It's simple logic and pretty obvious," he said with a sly grin at Scorpius.

"Haha, very funny," said Scorpius while rolling his eyes. "Alright then, what are your plans?"

Teddy went first saying, "Well, from what you said, it's obvious that Hannah only wants your dad's money, correct?" Raven and Jade both nodded. "What if you just told your dad to try restricting Hannah's access to his Gringott's account?"

"He wouldn't do that," said Jade.

"Well, he'll listen to you two, won't he?" Without waiting for a response, Teddy plowed on. "What if you told him that he should try restricting her access to see if she truly loves him? If she freaks out and goes crazy, then it'll become obvious that she's only in it for the money!"

"Hmm," said Raven. "That might work, but I think I like my plan better."

"What is it then?" asked Scorpius.

"I'm thinking that we should get a muggle recording device and record Hannah saying that she isn't in love with our dad," said Raven.

"But Raven," said Jade. "We would have to wait for Christmas break at the earliest to pull that off!"

Raven opened her mouth to object, then deflated. "You're right. I guess we'll keep that one in reserve if it hasn't happened by then. What have you got, Jade?"

"I say we contact Rita Skeeter—you know, Raven, the horrible woman Professor Granger told us about?—and give her some dirt on Hannah, anonymously of course," said Jade. "She loves to dish the dirt on famous people—I don't think she'll be able to resist."

"My father told me about Rita Skeeter," said Scorpius. "She sounds horrible."

"So is it agreed then?" asked Teddy.

"I think it is," said Raven. "I'll just go get a piece of parchment and a pen and we'll get to writing."

At that moment an owl flew into the room, and Raven and Jade recognized it as their dad's, a spotted owl named Bird (Raven and Jade didn't find this as funny as their dad did). Raven and Jade looked at each other questioningly—they had gotten the previous letter from their dad in the morning like everyone else. Jade stood up and grabbed the letter and Bird stayed, cleaning his feathers.

Jade sat back down in the chair and opened the letter, and as she read more her eyes got wider, until she finally held out the letter to Raven and let her head fall back on the chair. "Read it out loud," she said.

Raven Read,

"Dear Raven and Jade,

"How are you? I've missed you both so much, and I'm glad to hear you apologized and haven't gotten in trouble again. I'm sending this letter to you outside of the normal owl post because I wanted you to be able to think and talk to each other after I ask you this question.

"As you know, Hannah and I really like each other. I actually love her. With your permission, I would like to ask her for her hand in marriage next weekend. You two mean more to me than anything else in the world, and I'm more worried about your happiness than mine, so I'd like your opinion on the matter.

"Always remember that I love both of you,
Dad."

The group sat in a stunned silence for a while as they digested this shocking information. It was finally broken when Scorpius asked, "What are you going to do."

Raven and Jade glanced at each other and said. "We'll tell him we're happy for him and hope it goes well. She seems to make him happy."

"So we're giving up?" asked Teddy incredulously.

"Of course not," said Raven mischievously. "She may seem to make him happy now, but it will just hurt even more if he finds out the truth after their married. The only difference now is that we have to do this quickly and we have to make double sure that we do this anonymously."

"Right," said Scorpius determinedly. "Let's do it."

The two twins both stared at Scorpius and simultaneously burst out laughing. "What?" inquired Scorpius. "What's so funny?"

"You," said Jade. "I thought you said that all this love stuff was boring."

Scorpius examined his nails like he didn't care about anything at the moment. "It is. I was just acting so it looked like I really wanted to do it…for your benefit, you know?"

"Right," said Teddy.

"Whatever," said Raven before going back to boss mode. "Scorpius, go grab me some parchment and a quill and ink so we can write this letter to Rita Skeeter!"

"Why do I have to do it?" asked Scorpius.

"Because you didn't come up with a proper plan, that's why," said Raven and the other two laughed.

Scorpius grumbled the whole way up the boys' staircase and was still grumbling when he got back. "There," he said as he shoved the items into Raven's hands.

"Thank you Scorpius," replied Raven sweetly. Then she got serious again. "Alright then." She dipped the quill in the ink and poised it over the parchment. "Dear Rita Skeeter…"

***GMAC***

It was dinner on Saturday and Hermione had just finished her delicious pudding. As she got up from the staff table, Raven and Jade approached her. "Professor Granger, can we talk to you in private please?"

"Absolutely," replied Hermione and followed them out of the Great Hall, unsure what this was all about.

They went into the first classroom they found and went in, locking the door behind him. "What is all the secrecy about, you two?" asked Professor Granger of her two favorite students (not that she would tell anybody that, of course).

"It's horrible! Our daddy's going to propose to Hannah!" Jade exclaimed.

Hermione felt her heart stop beating and a lump formed in her throat. She felt tears begin to fill up her eyes, and she sat down hard on the desk behind her.

"Jade!" exclaimed Raven. "I told you not to tell her like that! Look what you did to her!"

"Sorry!" replied Jade. "I couldn't help myself!"

"Professor Granger," said Raven, "You have to tell our dad how you feel. If he just knew that you loved him…"

Hermione sighed, looking down at her hands. "No," she said. "No, Harry is almost as stubborn as I am. No matter what he says he harbors resentment towards me somewhere, even if he does love me. He'll go through with it no matter what."

"No he won't," said Jade. "Because we're going to break them up!"

"Jade, will you stop talking!" Raven shouted.

"Why would you break them up?" Hermione asked sadly. "Harry's obviously happy."

"Well I don't think he'd be happy if he knew Hannah was a gold digger, would he?" asked Raven. "My point is that Hannah doesn't truly love him and you do. I think he deserves to have someone who truly loves him."

"I'm telling you, it's not going to work," said Hermione.

Raven crossed her arms. "You leave that to us, Professor Granger. You just work on preparing yourself to tell him how you really feel when the opportunity presents itself, alright?" she asked stubbornly.

Hermione couldn't help but smile. Considering the fact that these two were Harry's replicas, she was pretty sure that they would get the job done, especially because they had made her a promise. Harry never broke his promises.

"Okay then, we'll see you on Monday," said Raven, dragging her sister with her towards the door.

"Bye, Professor Granger," said Jade.

"Don't forget to practice turning your needles into matches!" Hermione reminded them as the door closed behind them. Then Hermione shook her head at herself. She really was always in teacher mode.

Hermione, who didn't feel like talking to anybody, disillusioned herself before heading back to her room.

With no preamble at all, she unceremoniously threw herself onto the bed and began sobbing. She sobbed and sobbed, staining her pillow and sheets.

Because despite the promise the girls made, and now that the small rush at having a plan was gone, Hermione couldn't find it in herself to be optimistic.

***GMAC***

Harry looked down at the ring in his hand. It was pretty simple, with a gold band and one diamond because he didn't like to spend too much money or show it off. He planned on asking her the question next Saturday, when they went to Incendio again.

Harry had his doubts, of course. They hadn't been going out for long. She may not be in love with him yet. Despite what he told his girls, he wasn't sure that he was completely in love with her yet, but he knew that he was going to be if he gave it some time.

The problem was that it was impossible to devote one's heart to someone completely when it was still in love with another. Harry chuckled as he looked down at the ring. He had been expecting to be asking Hermione for her hand in marriage on day. Not even six months ago did he even dream that he would be asking Hannah Abbot.

Harry's main fear was that he was rushing things. But to be perfectly honest, he thought that this was the perfect way to get Hermione out of his head and out of his heart.

He was tired of pining for Hermione, and he just wanted it to be over. If he finally solved the issue of his love life it would be one less thing to worry about.

He hoped that Raven and Jade would be for the marriage. If they didn't want it to happen he wouldn't do it, though. He would hold off on the proposal and let the two most important ladies in his life get to know Hannah better, and ask only when he got the okay from them.

Sighing out of an odd combination of worry and happiness, Harry hid the ring under his bed and got under the blankets with his (hopefully) soon-to-be fiancée.

A/N: Ooh, and the plot thickens.

I hope you enjoyed reading it. Please leave me a Review, they really mean a lot to me!

A/N: Sorry about the delay. Life has been hectic! I promise sooner updates. Look for them every three days!

Chapter 8 – The Plan Unfolds…

When Hermione received her Daily Prophet the next morning she was shocked.

True Love: Hannah Abbot and…Harry Potter’s Wallet?

Yesterday afternoon, I, Rita Skeeter, the only Daily Prophet writer that uncovers the truth for her loyal readers, discovered some disturbing news. Harry Potter’s girlfriend of six months, Hannah Abbot, is not truly in love with Harry.

After receiving an anonymous tip to check Hannah Abbot’s spending, I discovered that she spends over 250 galleons a week! Many of the purchases come from expensive robe shops such as The Silk Unicorn, and she has over 70 pairs of shoes. Extravagant? Also according to the tip, Hannah Abbot apparently hates Harry Potter’s children, Raven and Jade Potter, who are both currently attending their first year in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Is it good for the two eleven-year-old girls to grow up in a household where the female role-model is showing them through her actions that it is acceptable to date a man just to spend the money in his wallet? The wielder of this mighty quill says no, but I guess it is just for the wizarding public to decide.

Hermione looked over toward the Gryffindor table to see Raven and Jade stifling laughs. Hermione knew they were going to try to break up Harry and Hannah, but she didn’t know that it would entail this! It really seemed a bit drastic and if Harry knew…Hermione shuddered at the thought.

But then she began daydreaming at the staff table. She saw Harry reading the Prophet and throwing it down in disgust. He would check his Gringotts account and see that the Prophet was telling the truth. He would march up to Hannah and break up with her. Then she would finally be free to reveal her feelings to him. He would respond by sweeping her off her feet and giving her a kiss, then they would step into his bedroom and make sure to lock it behind them.

Wait a second, thought Hermione, what the hell is happening to me? She didn’t daydream—she only thought logically. She found that as she grew older her heart began to grow enough to affect her brain with silly emotions just a bit…like what had just happened. So Hermione decided to think logically.

She thought through what would really happen—knowing Harry—and sighed. If the girls thought it would be that easy they would have to think again.

---GMAC---

Raven and Jade smirked with glee as they looked down the table at Teddy and Scorpius, who smirked back. The plan was going great. By the end of tonight, Hannah Abbot would officialy be out of the picture…then it was on to phase B: Operation Get-Harry-and-Hermione-Together.

The day was great—Raven and Jade couldn’t keep the smiles off their faces. It seemed that nothing could go wrong: They had both been perfect in their first flying lessons, they had beat Teddy and Scorpius in a two-on-two wizard chess match, and had even finished all of their homework by 7:00 PM.

At dinner they had turkey, which was absolutely delicious…until Bird arrived. Bird took off as soon as he had dropped off the letter, which meant that their dad didn’t need a reply. Before opening the letter, the twins smirked at each other, obviously believing that this letter signified the end of Hannah Abbot. They eagerly opened the letter and read:

Raven and Jade,

I know you just heard from me yesterday, but this is very important. Never believe anything the Daily Prophet writes, especially if the author of the article is Rita Skeeter.

Raven and Jade looked at each other, mouths open like they were trying to catch flies. This was definitely not what they had been expecting.

I don’t know if either of you saw what was written in that horrible paper about Hannah this morning. If you did, please don’t let it change your opinions about her. She is a very sweet girl and I am indeed in love with her. It is true that she is spending quite a bit of money, but she grew up poor and isn’t used to having this much money to spend. Quite honestly, we have enough to last us. I’m sure that she’s just going through a phase.

She was really upset by the article and to make it up to her, I decided to propose to her…and she said yes!

Both girls almost fainted upon reading this.

We’re thinking about having the wedding during Easter Break, and we’re going to ask Headmistress McGonagall if you can get that week off so you can attend the wedding! (I’m sure she’ll say yes, but don’t tell her I said that.)

Now I know you already know this, but you’re not any under obligation to call Hannah ‘mom’ or anything just because we’re going to get married. The truth is that you won’t really see her all that much except for Christmas and summer break.

And as a last question: when are Quidditch try-outs. I want to send you two a little good-luck gift on the big day!

Love,

Dad

After finishing, both girls just stared at each other trying not to burst into tears. Not only had their amazing plan failed, but it completely backfired…their dad had decided to push the proposal up!

At that second Teddy and Scorpius sat down. The two boys looked at the girls and simultaneously asked, “Who died?”

Raven wordlessly handed the letter over to the two to read it, and at the end of it they looked as bleak as their two female friends.

“Now what?” asked Scorpius.

“I don’t know,” said Jade, who recovered before Raven. “But I think we have to notify Professor Granger of this development.”

That said, the group of four slowly and silently made their way toward the Transfiguration classroom. As soon as they knocked the door opened, and Hermione shook her head and said, “I wondered how long it would be until I saw you guys.”

She let them in and they gave her the letter to read. When she looked back up her eyes were glistening, but it seemed that she had already known something like this was going to happen. Telling them to sit down, Hermione made her way over to her desk and sat on the edge of it.

“Girls…actually, all four of you, while I appreciate what you were trying to do, that definitely wasn’t the best way of doing it…and not just because Harry hates Rita Skeeter,” said Hermione as an afterthought. “No matter what you are doing or what you know about someone, it’s not right to share their secrets with a newspaper and expose their faults to the entire British wizarding population. You all crossed a line, and I would tell you to apologize to Hannah if I didn’t know that you would get into huge trouble from your parents. So this time I’ll let it slide, but I hope you four never do something so…so…so Slytherin,” Hermione said, unable to think of a better word and knowing that this conversation wasn’t going to leave this room, “again. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

All eight downcast eyes rose to meet Hermione’s. Raven, Jade, Scorpius, and Teddy simultaneously said, “Yes, Professor Granger.”

“Good,” said Hermione, satisfied. “Now please go back to your common room.”

The young Marauders proceeded up to their dormitories in silence, ashamed that they disappointed their favorite professor. They sat on the comfy chairs in silence for a good fifteen minutes until Scorpius asked, “So that’s it? Are we just giving up then?”

“No,” replied Raven sulkily. “We’re just recovering from being swept off our feet. We need to think of the plans we still have: mine and Teddy’s. Unless…Scorpius, have you come up with one yet?”

“No,” he replied simply. At the other’s semi-angry looks, he said, “I thought Jade’s plan was going to work! I didn’t think I’d need to come up with one!”

“It doesn’t matter,” replied Raven, getting a bit frustrated. “We can’t use mine until Christmas Break, so I guess we’re using Teddy’s.”

“Mine?” asked Teddy, a bit shocked.

“Of course, dummy,” replied Jade. “We’ll just write a letter telling our dad that we’re concerned by the article and just to make absolutely sure that Hannah is in love with him, he should try restricting her vault access for a while.”

“Yeah,” said Raven, hopes and spirits rising. “And when Hannah freaks out and throws a hissy-fit, our dad will dump her butt on the streets for sure!”

“Sweet!” said Scorpius.

Three pairs of eyes turned towards him, and he sighed before running upstairs to fetch a quill, some ink, and a piece of parchment, already knowing the drill.

---GMAC---

That night, Hermione lay on her back on her bed, thinking hard and staring up at the ceiling unblinkingly. Her thoughts were like a raging storm and she was trying to make sense of them to no avail. What was mostly getting in the way were her emotions, which had never been her strong suit. Sure, she knew and sympathized what was going on in other people’s heads, but for some reason her brain had trouble deciphering her own.

On the one hand, she was pleased that Hannah was exposed to the wizarding world for the fraud she was. On the other hand, she was somewhat disgusted with herself for being pleased. She felt jealousy when she had read that Harry was in love with Hannah and it still burned strong, bubbling in her chest and stomach. She still felt that burning, passionate, undying love for Harry. And to top it all off, she felt ashamed that she was relying on four eleven-year-olds to break up Harry’s girlfriend…now fiancée.

She really felt that she was truly pathetic. She was a big girl—she didn’t need Raven and Jade to get Hannah Abbot out of the picture. She would let them continue—they always needed a back-up plan and it might be better if that worked first—but Hermione thought it was about time that she get in the ring to win Harry’s heart.

Oh yeah. It was definitely just about time for a good-ol’ fashioned cat-fight.

---GMAC---

Hannah Abbot lay next to Harry, her back turned to him.

She sighed, wishing that Harry would leave her alone most of the time. Despite being the-boy-who-won, he was very boring! All he wanted to talk about were the twins, or Quidditch, or what they were going to have for dinner, or how her day was, or if she was still okay after that news article. He just always seemed to be talking!

Hannah stifled a laugh as her thoughts drifted back to the news article. She thought that she had been found out—that the gig was up—but she had been lucky that Harry had had several bad experiences with Rita Skeeter in the past. He had come up to her and apologized profusely and kissed her and promised to make it up to her.

And he had. He had asked for her hand in marriage that same night(not that he had been competent enough to even do it right, Hannah thought to herself disgustedly while looking at the glint of gold on her left hand. This ring probably isn’t even worth 750 galleons!). Now all his money was going to be hers for the rest of her life! She would get to be rich and laugh at all the poor people like they had done to her!

Grinning like a maniac, Hannah turned her back to Harry and quickly fell asleep, dreaming that she was swimming in a pool of galleons.

A/N: So…um…yeah. Don’t really know what to say now but to please review! (Can you all let me know if this chapter felt rushed to you? Because it did when I was writing it.)

And I don’t know why, but it seems that I somehow always end the chapter with a character dreaming or going to bed. It’s weird, because it’s completely unintentional. Huh…whatever.

A/N: Here’s the next chapter!

Please Enjoy!

Chapter 9 – Plan B

When Harry Potter woke up on Monday it was to an owl tapping his window with its beak. He recognized the owl as Raven’s—a snowy named Rayne. Harry eagerly jumped out of bed and opened the window, untying the letter from the owl that reminded him so much of Hedwig.

Dad,

I know you told us not to worry about the article in the Daily Prophet, but we’re still a bit concerned. We just want you to be happy, and Jade and I would feel much better if we had undeniable proof of Hannah’s love for you.

Harry sighed to himself. Damn that Rita Skeeter. Harry already knew Hannah loved him, but he could see the girls not recognizing and understanding such a deep and complex emotion. Focusing on the letter again, he continued reading.

If she really loved you, I don’t think she’d mind if you restricted her access to the vaults for just one month. Please Daddy, do this for us.

Love,
Raven and Jade.

Running his hands through his hair, Harry pondered what he should do. He loved Hannah, and he knew doing this would show a lack of confidence in her and upset her, especially now that they were engaged. But Raven and Jade were his girls, the two girls he loved more than anything in the world, and…he couldn’t deny them anything.

Sighing again, Harry took out a piece of paper and started writing.

Dear Griphook,

---GMAC---

“He did what?” Hannah shrieked in Griphook’s face. “How dare you say such a thing, you filthy creature! My Harry would never keep me from his money!”

“Well,” said Griphook, a sneer on his face, “since you seem to be hard of hearing, I’ll show you the letter he sent me which bears his signature and the Potter Family Seal.”

When Hannah snatched the letter from Griphook’s hands, her eyes widened in shock and her jaw dropped. “H-how…HOW COULD HE DO THIS TO ME?!”

Hannah immediately apparated straight out of Gringotts and back to Potter Manor. She was definitely going to have some words with Harry about this.

“Harry!” she called, a rough and manic edge to her voice. “Harry!”

Harry appeared before her, a nervous smile on his face. “Y-yes, darling?”

“What is this?” she demanded, brandishing the letter in front of his face.

“Er…a request to restrict your vault access,” said Harry, sweat forming on his brow.

Hannah was about to explode on him, but then remembered at the last second that she was supposed to be in love with Harry, not his money. If she freaked out on him, he might see that she was only in it for the money. It was times like these that she was glad she had liked acting in front of the mirror when she was young.

She looked down and let tears collect in her eyes before looking up at her fiancé. “I thought you didn’t believe Rita Skeeter? I thought you loved me,” she said with a sob. Harry reached a hand out to comfort her but she backed away. “Aren’t we supposed to trust each other? Isn’t that what it means to be in a relationship?”

“Yes,” said Harry, eager to explain his reasoning. “But Raven and Jade are worried about me and want me to be happy. They don’t know you as well as I do and they just want to make sure that you’re not just in it for the money. I do trust you sweetheart, I’m just doing this for the girls’ sakes.”

Damn brats, Hannah thought to herself. They know. “I see,” Hannah said, letting more tears come. It was time to see if she could get Harry to allow her to have access to the vaults again. “You’re choosing them over me.”

“What?” asked Harry coldly, an edge of menace in his voice.

Hannah could feel the magic growing thicker around Harry. She had pushed him too far. “Er…I mean…”

“I explained to you when we got into this relationship that I would do absolutely anything for my girls and that they would always be first in my heart,” said Harry, his eyes glowing from the magic. “You knew coming into this that if it came down to the wire, I would choose them over you. If you’re telling me to just brush aside Raven and Jade…” Harry finished menacingly.

“No!” cried Hannah. “That’s not what I meant to say!” She could see all of her dreams (well, her one dream of being rich) crumbling before her eyes. “I just meant that they’re young and they probably don’t understand the depth of love we have for each other! If you’re doing it for them…” Hannah cringed on the inside, “then I don’t care. If going a month without access to the vaults will show them that I truly love you…then I’ll gladly do it,” she finished with a smile.

Harry’s threatening demeanor quickly dropped and his eyes crinkled at the corners as he smiled at her. “I’m glad to hear it,” he said. “And if you want me to show you how much I love you right now…” he trailed off as he came up close to her.

And no matter how much Hannah disliked Harry, she couldn’t deny such a sexy man. She smiled seductively at him, and he grabbed her hand and started pulling her through the house toward their room.

His back was turned to her and she finally allowed herself to scowl. She was certain of a three things: 1. Harry was incredibly scary when he was angry; 2. Raven and Jade were seriously annoying; and 3. This coming month was going to be incredibly difficult.

---GMAC---

The next day, Raven and Jade received two letters, one with their dad’s handwriting and one with Hannah’s handwriting. They decided to read their dad’s first.

Raven and Jade,

I’m very sorry that the article upset you two so much. I did as you said and denied Hannah’s access to the vault because I love you two very much and want you to like Hannah. She took the news well—well, as well as one can—and she decided…well, I’ll let you two read the letter she sent you so you can hear from her.

I love you two very much and I hope everything is going well at school!

Love,
Dad

Raven and Jade looked at each other in utter disbelief before opening and reading Hannah’s letter.

Dear Raven and Jade,

First off, I wish to say that I miss you two very much and I hope you are having fun at school.

Both girls snorted simultaneously.

I’m happy that you love your father so much and wish him to be happy, and I want you to know that I will gladly abide to your wishes if it will show you two that I am truly in love with him.

We both miss you and we can’t wait to see you when you come home for Christmas!

Hannah

Raven tore up Hannah’s letter and threw it in the fire as Jade slumped back against the couch. “I can’t believe that vile woman,” Raven said.

Jade had a more thoughtful look on her face. “It’s only day one, sis. If she makes it past two weeks without completely freaking out, I’ll be truly impressed.”

Raven grinned at Jade evilly. “I just thought of something.”

“What?” asked Jade.

“I think you’re going to like it,” said Raven.

---GMAC---

Harry took one look at the paper the next morning and threw it across the table disgustedly. There was a picture of Hannah on it, which could only mean that Rita Skeeter must’ve figured out what had happened. “Son of a bitch! How did she figure it out this time?” he asked himself rhetorically before sighing and picking up the paper again to see what it had to say.

Trouble in Paradise? Rita Skeeter

When I, Rita Skeeter, award-winning journalist, was eating an ice-cream sundae at Florean Fortescue’s Ice Cream Parlor in Diagon Alley yesterday, an interesting sight met my eyes. I was shocked to see Hannah Abbot storming out of Gringotts, fury etched on her face.

And I, the ever-investigating reporter, decided to get the facts for her loyal readers. I asked to see a goblin who shall remain unnamed. The goblin in question gladly gave me the details.

”Hannah Abbot came to make a withdrawal today, but the bank had received a letter earlier from Mr. Potter stating that she was to be restricted from having access to the vaults,” the goblin informed me. “She then proceeded to throw a fit, calling me a filthy creature in the process.”

Obviously Harry Potter was concerned by the article I had written about Hannah Abbot only being with him for his money. It is good to know that I was able to help the hero of our world in realizing that his now-fiancée was not truly in love with him.

Until next time, Rita Skeeter.

Harry couldn’t believe it. First of all, the bank had given out classified information. But then Harry thought to himself that they would never do that and that Skeeter must have used her Animagus ability to look at the records, then faked a conversation with a goblin to cover her tracks and put Hannah in the worst light possible.

Hannah came downstairs for breakfast still in her pajamas. She looked at Harry and asked, “What are you so angry about, darling?”

Harry sighed and wordlessly handed the paper over to her. As she read it her eyes widened, and if Harry hadn’t been chewing his cereal he would’ve heard her mutter, “That stupid goblin!”

Fortunately for her, he was chewing his cereal, so he didn’t understand what she said. “What was that?” he asked.

When Hannah looked up at him again she looked like she was about to cry. “How could they?”

“It’s just the press making stuff up again. Don’t worry about it—I know you’d never say something like that to a goblin.” He stood up and hugged her, then sighed. “Looks like I’ll have to write another letter to Raven and Jade.”

---GMAC---

The two girls were currently sitting in Transfiguration Class, inwardly smirking. The plan had gone even better than they hoped. All they had done was send a letter to Rita saying to check the Potter Vault access list. They never expected her to go above and beyond, getting an interview from an actual goblin. It must’ve been pretty angry at Hannah to spill the beans on something confidential. They could definitely see Hannah calling the goblin a filthy creature.

After class, Hermione asked them to stay. “Are you two responsible for this news article again?” she asked, no warmth in her voice.

It was times like these that Raven and Jade were glad their dad had taught them Occlumency. “No, Professor Granger,” they said simultaneously.

“Why am I finding it hard to believe?” asked Hermione. “How else could Rita Skeeter have known?”

“She must’ve seen Hannah like she said she did,” said Raven with no trouble keeping a straight face. “All we did was ask our dad to restrict her vault access for a month. That way, when Hannah snaps, our dad will see that she really doesn’t care about him. Honestly, Professor, we really didn’t mean to get the press involved.”

Hermione sighed, then smiled at the two. “Alright, I believe you two. And between you two and me, that’s actually a pretty good idea.”

“Thanks, Professor,” said Jade. “Now can we please be excused? Quidditch tryouts are this weekend and we need to utilize the small amount of light that we have left.”

“Sure,” said Hermione. “I’ll see you tomorrow at lunch.” Raven and Jade had taken to eating lunch with their Professor.

“Yep, bye!” said Raven, leaving the classroom with Jade.

The twins looked at each other a bit guiltily. They felt bad about lying to Hermione, but really, there was no other way to win this war but to fight dirty. If she didn’t have the resolve or guts to do it, then it was all up to Raven and Jade to get it done.

And they would get it done no matter what.

---GMAC---

Hermione sighed to herself as she got out a piece of parchment. She had been putting it off for days, but she couldn’t hold back any longer. The longer she waited to get in the fight for Harry’s heart, the closer it came to the wedding.

And once that happened, the chances of winning Harry’s heart were going to go from improbable to impossible.

A/N: Holy Merlin, I didn’t know I could be that evil. It’s actually quite fun. Poor delusional Harry, I really feel bad for him. And did you see what I did there when he thought that the girls wouldn’t understand love when in fact they understand it even better than he does?

I hope you enjoyed it, and please review!

A/N: Here it is!

Chapter 10 - Tougher Than They Thought

Dear Harry,

I was just wondering if you maybe wanted to have lunch this Saturday in Hogsmeade? It really has been too long and I want to see you again.

Love from,
Hermione

Harry stared at the letter for a second, a frown on his face. It wasn’t like Hermione to be nervous about asking her friend if he wanted to have lunch with her. She almost never got nervous…unless tests were involved, of course.

Maybe the past three years had changed her more than he had first thought.

He really didn’t know how to respond to Hermione’s letter. On the one hand he missed his best friend and ached to see her again. On the other hand he was afraid that having lunch with her would confirm what he had desperately been trying to deny: that he was still in love with the bushy-haired bookworm.

His desires beating down his doubt, Harry picked up a quill, dipped it in the ink bottle on his desk, and wrote back:

That would be great. The Three Broomsticks at noon? If you don’t reply I’ll assume your response is a yes.

Harry

It was about time Harry lived up to his Gryffindor heritage and faced his fears.

---GMAC---

Hermione had at first been ecstatic that Harry had been willing to come. She would finally get to see him and spend some time with him, something she had been longing to do since the day she learned he had disappeared.

But now, sitting in the Three Broomsticks at 11:55 on Saturday, Hermione couldn’t help but feel apprehensive about the fact that she was going to be spending time with Harry again. What if she said the wrong thing and botched it up? She didn’t want to go another three years without seeing him again.

Collecting herself and trying to will her knees to stop shaking under the table, Hermione glanced over at the door, where a shadow had fallen, to see Harry standing there, his eyes scanning the room for her. When he spotted her, a small smile graced his lips and he weaved his way through the tables to get to the one Hermione was at.

Now Hermione had to will her stomach to stop fluttering. It was better to keep a straight head in a delicate and important situation such as this.

“Hi, Harry,” she said, smiling.

“How are you doing, Hermione?” Harry asked as he shrugged out of his coat and placed it on the seat next to his.

“Not bad. You?” Hermione asked in return.

“I’m good, really good. You heard about my engagement with Hannah?” Harry asked.

Crap, Hermione thought to herself. Coming into this she had wanted to avoid all discussion of Hannah as it would detract from her true intentions of asking him out to lunch.

“Yeah, I heard,” Hermione replied warmly while at the same time remaining neutral. It wouldn’t do well to blatantly show her dislike of his fiancée.

“We’re going to have the wedding during Easter Break,” explained Harry. “You’re welcome to come.”

“That sounds good,” lied Hermione. In actuality there was no way she would be attending his wedding (unless she was the bride, of course). Either there would be no wedding because Harry would be in love with her, or if there was a wedding that would mean that Hermione would’ve failed and there was no way she was going to torture herself by watching the man she loved be wed to another.

“What do you think is better: dress robes or suits and dresses?” asked Harry.

Hermione inwardly groaned. This was not going anywhere near how she had pictured it would. She realized that if she wanted it to go the way she wanted it to, she would actually have to do something to get there. “Actually, Harry, can we not talk about the wedding? I want to hear about you alone, not you and Hannah.”

“What’s the matter? You’re not happy for me?” asked Harry, a touch of hurt in his voice.

“It’s not that Harry, it’s just…I’ve had a long week at work and I don’t really want to have to think too hard,” Hermione lied again.

Harry nodded slowly. “Alright,” he finally said. “So what do you want to talk about?”

“Us,” Hermione replied.

“Us?” Harry asked.

“Yes,” said Hermione. “I know that you feel it, too. If we avoid the topic of what happened three years ago we’ll never be able to go back to being our old selves. I miss what we had, Harry. We have to talk about it and move on.” That was just the first step for Hermione’s plan to get more than what they previously had. Once Harry felt comfortable around her again he might remember the feelings he had for her. And if not…Hermione was prepared to give him a little push in the right direction.

Harry’s face seemed emotionless. Then, finally, he let his guard down, his face showing apprehensiveness, vulnerability, and a touch of fear, and sighed. “I suppose you’re right.” A ghost of a smile flickered on his face. “As usual.”

Hermione met his eyes and sincerely said, “You never gave me the chance to truly apologize.”

“You don’t need to anymore,” said Harry, not meeting her eye. “I got over it a while ago.”

“No matter whether you are truly over it or not, apologies are necessary to mend relationships,” said Hermione. “So I just want to say that I really am sorry for not returning your feelings. I understand how hard it was to confess and how much harder it is to deal with rejection.”

“You do, do you?” asked Harry, a dark tone to his voice. “You know how hard it is to see the person you love with someone else and be happy? You know how hard it is to piece together the shattered remains of your heart and move on? You were only ever with Ron, Hermione. You never had to put your neck on the chopping block. I don’t think you know anything.”

Hermione knew that this was just three years worth of bottled frustration and heartbreak coming out, but the words hurt her all the same. Harry had never spoken to her like that before. And who was he to speak about those things like he was the only one this had ever happened to? “Actually, Harry,” replied Hermione strongly, “I know more than you think. I know exactly what it’s like to see the person you love with someone else, and I know what it’s like to try to move on after having your heart broken. Just because I’ve only been with Ron doesn’t mean that he’s the only man I’ve ever loved.”

Harry stared defiantly at Hermione for a few seconds before breaking down and running a hand through his hair in frustration. “I’m sorry, Hermione,” he said. “It’s not right for me to take out everything on you just because you didn’t love me back.”

“It’s alright, Harry,” said Hermione, putting her hand on top of his. “I understand. No matter how much you try to deny it, whether to yourself, me, or anybody else, I know that there’s a part of you deep inside that hates me for what happened. But once you release that anger, then it can truly be gone.”

“Actually, I think it’s already gone,” said Harry, smiling weakly at her. “I think I’m angrier at myself.”

“Angry at yourself?” Hermione asked.

“Yeah,” said Harry. He moved his hand so it was on top of Hermione’s and gave it a gentle squeeze. “I’m sorry for putting you in that situation. It must’ve been hard having to hurt me and I know that by telling you how I felt I hurt you as well, especially when I disappeared for three years. That’s why I’m angry at myself. I know that I hurt not only me, but you as well.”

If only you knew the real reason why I’m hurting, Hermione thought wryly to herself. “It’s alright, Harry. I think it was good that you told me. Or else you would be living with regret right now. And despite how much it hurt to be rejected, I know for a fact that regret is twenty times worse.” Because I live with it every day.

Harry looked at her thoughtfully for a few seconds. Then he smiled. “I guess you’re right.” He chuckled and said, “And you were right about having to talk about it. I feel much better.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” said Hermione. “I feel better too.”

“Good,” said Harry. “Now, have you had any more trouble from my girls?”

“No,” said Hermione, laughing. “Actually, we eat lunch together most days.”

As lunch went on the two friends fell into their old ways and became more comfortable with each other. They spent most of the afternoon together and only parted ways when Harry had to leave to get ready for his date with Hannah. By that time it was like the past three years had never happened and the two planned to get together for lunch again the next Saturday.

Things were progressing just as Hermione wanted. The easy part was over, and it was now time for the hard part to begin.

---GMAC---

Raven and Jade smiled as at each other as they dismounted their brooms. They had both made it on the Gryffindor Quidditch team as Chasers and had just finished their first practice.

Things had been looking up the past few weeks. Not only had they made the Gryffindor Quidditch team, but Hermione and their dad had had lunch together for three weeks in a row.

There was only one blight on their high spirits and that was the fact that Hannah hadn’t cracked yet. They thought for sure that there was no way she could’ve lasted a month. But now there were only five days until the month was up and no letters of thanks had come from their dad stating that they were right about Hannah and he and Hannah had broken up.

It seemed that it was time to develop a new plan.

---GMAC---

At dinner that night in a small restaurant in Spain overlooking the ocean, Hannah Abbot tried hard not to fidget. Now that she had become accustomed to the taste of money and being rich, it was hard going so long without it, especially when it was just barely out of her reach.

She ached for it, she craved it. She was addicted to it, and she was experiencing withdrawal symptoms. She needed money now. She needed it now. She couldn’t take it any longer. She needed it RIGHT NOW!

Everywhere she looked, she saw places she could be spending her money. Not only that, but she had missed the deal of the year. One of her favorite shoe stores went out of business and they had had a three-day-long grand closing sale. And she had missed it. Missed it because of those stupid kids.

Oh, how she wished those two snot-nosed brats weren’t around to interfere. They couldn’t leave her alone even when they were hundreds of miles away. And now, because of them, she was about to lose any chance of being with Harry’s wallet for eternity.

Because she was going to freak out. The money was gone. She couldn’t spend it right now. And she wouldn’t be able to for another five days. If she could just get her hands on a single bill, she would be able to tough it out for the next few days. If she just had a single bill to touch, to smell, to caress. But no, she had to be stupid and spend every last knut she had stored in the tin under the bed. It had only been a meager 100 galleons. She had told herself to make sure it lasted, but there had been that one skirt, and that one belt, and that one set of robes. And now it had been two weeks, four days, seven hours and 27 minutes since she had last bought something—since she had last felt the smooth gold surface of a galleon.

And she couldn’t take it anymore.

A/N: I know, I know. But you’re going to have to wait. Next chapter begins the battle for Harry’s heart and drama with Hannah ensues.

Please Review!

A/N: A series of unfortunate events kept me from updating this story, the first and foremost being that my laptop was out of commission for several weeks. You have my humblest apologies for the delay, and I promise to make it up to you by updating regularly now that it seems it will be possible.

Again, I’m very sorry for the delay and I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 11 – A Lucky Break

Hannah had to clutch the arms of her chair to prevent her own arms from violently shaking. She could feel sweat beading on her forehead and upper lip. The noise from the restaurant seemed to bombard her, and she could feel a muscle in her eye begin to twitch. Her senses were on overdrive and being assaulted. She was hyperventilating, she couldn't get enough air in her lungs.

The money. Why did Harry have to take away the money?

"Hannah?" asked Harry, looking at his fiancée with concern. "Hannah, are you okay?"

"Am I okay?" asked Hannah. "Am I…okay?" She could feel laughs bubbling up for no apparent reason. She let them out and they had a mad edge to them. "Of course I'm not bloody okay! I feel horrible!"

Harry abruptly stood up and grabbed Hannah by the arm, pulling her up and dragging her toward the exit after slapping some bills on the table. "Why didn't you say anything earlier?"

"Where are you taking me?" demanded Hannah, trying to struggle out of Harry's grip.

"We're going to St. Mungo's," he informed her. "Something is obviously wrong with you."

Harry walked down an empty alley and apparated to St. Mungo's Hospital, taking Hannah with him. They arrived right in the reception area. Luckily for them, it seemed to be a pretty slow night, so they were taken to see a healer right away.

Hannah dreaded each step toward the room. Once the healer checked her out and discovered nothing wrong with her, she would have to spill the beans to Harry. Either way, this looked like a dire situation.

The healer came in, a tall, old, thin man with coke-bottle glasses, his pristine white robe swishing around his legs as he walked. "Ah, Mr. Potter," he said, reaching his hand out to shake hands with the-man-who-triumphed. "Healer Pinkstaff at your service."

Harry shook the man's hand quickly, saying, "Nice to meet you, sir. Can you please check why my fiancée isn't feeling well?"

"Certainly," said Pinkstaff. He muttered a spell under his breath and moved his wand around Hannah's body in a similar fashion to the way muggle airport security would scan someone with a handheld metal detector. "It seems as though she only has a simple case of food poisoning," said Pinkstaff with a smile. He waved his wand in the air, making a piece of paper appear in the air which he snatched and handed to Harry. "Just take this to the receptionist and she'll give you the proper potion to fix your fiancée up in a jiffy."

"Thank you very much," said Harry with a smile before exiting the room and heading toward the reception area.

That certainly explains the sweating, Hannah thought numbly to herself as she followed Harry. But that's not all that's ailing me.

"I'm sorry, Hannah," said Harry, running a hand through his hair in frustration.

"Sorry?" she asked.

"You didn't want to go to the seafood shack yet I talked you into it anyway," Harry replied. "It's all my fault."

It was as though a divine power had saved Hannah. Here was her golden opportunity. "Well, you can always make it up to me," she said with a grin at Harry, acting her part perfectly.

"Anything," he said sincerely.

"Take me shopping tomorrow?" she asked hopefully, smiling at Harry and batting her eyelids. It was sickening to her that she had to be nice and sweet to Harry. She knew that if Harry took her shopping tomorrow, she could hold out for the last few days.

"You got it," he said.

They picked up the potion and Hannah drank it all before the couple apparated home, where they decided to call it a night.

Hannah lay in bed thanking fate, knowing she had dodged a fatal bullet.

---

Raven and Jade woke up in misery several days later. Today marked the end of the month—Hannah had made it without cracking. They couldn't believe it. They thought for sure that there was no way Hannah could possibly make it.

This was going to be much harder than they thought.

They still had five weeks until Christmas Break, which would be the easiest time to break Hannah and their dad up if only because of the fact that they would be right there to implement their plan. In the meantime, they could put one or two more plans into motion before then—they had always taken pride in the fact that they were overachievers.

The only problem was that they were fresh out of plans. They needed to regroup and restrategize, which meant that another official meeting of the Marauders was in order.

So later that evening found the four huddled up again, faces showing signs of frustration. "I can't believe she made it," said Teddy glumly.

"Dang it," said Scorpius angrily. "I thought for sure that…you know…wouldn't make it!"

"We need a new plan," said Raven. "And we need one now."

"Hmmm," they all said in unison.

After one minute all four spoke simultaneously.

"Threaten her," said Raven.

"Trick her," said both Teddy and Jade before blushing and looking in opposite directions.

"Kill her," said Scorpius with mad grin on his face.

Three pairs of eyes turned to Scorpius, looking at him like he was crazy. He shrugged. "What? It seems like it could be pretty easy. Just pretend it was an accident."

The other three looked at each other. "Who votes that Scorpius isn't allowed to share any more of his ideas?" said Raven.

Three hands were raised in response.

"I don't think it would work to threaten her," said Jade thoughtfully. "Daddy did beat Voldemort. Also, we're trying to work for Daddy to be happy. I think he won't be happy if Hannah is threatened and leaves him because of it. We have to make sure that Daddy breaks up with Hannah because of what she did, or else he'll blame himself and get depressed."

"Fine," huffed Raven. "I guess you're right. What are your ideas?" she asked Teddy and Jade.

"I say we trick her into cheating on daddy and make sure he sees," said Jade. "I mean, yeah, it'll hurt him, but in the end it'll still be her fault, not his."

"And just how do you plan on tricking her into cheating on him?" asked Raven skeptically.

"Remember that one time we were bored and looking through the Daily Prophet?" asked Jade. Raven gave her a look that said 'get to the point'. "We came across an ad that said 'Wizard Gigolo Service'. Remember, we asked daddy what a gigolo was?"

Raven grinned. "I think I see where you're going with this."

Jade nodded, an identical grin on her face. "We order one under Hannah's name, sending him to Potter Manor, and tell the man to destroy the letter. And even if she tells the man to leave, he'll want his money, which means that in the end daddy will end up seeing the man no matter what, because Hannah will have to fetch her purse from the room, where daddy will probably be working. You know how much he dislikes the office."

"Then it'll be obvious that Hannah is cheating on your dad!" said Scorpius excitedly.

"Exactly," said Jade.

"I like it," said Raven with a satisfied nod. "But before we implement it, what's your plan, Teddy?"

"Mine was actually the same as Jade's," said Teddy with an apologetic smile.

"It looks like we're going with that, then," said Raven.

"Good," said Jade. "Once this works out, all we'll have to do is focus on getting daddy and Professor Granger together."

---

Hermione sat at her and Harry's usual lunch table, smiling down at her hands as she waited for him. She really had missed him the past three years and was really enjoying reconnecting with him. It was always the best part of the week, even better than watching a student who had been struggling with a certain concept or spell finally master it, understanding in their eyes.

Today was the day that she really began her bid for Harry's heart. Now that he felt at ease around her, it was time to start moving in for the kill. She didn't have a lot of confidence in her beauty, so she was very afraid, but she knew that she would later regret it if she never tried.

Harry showed up a few minutes later, coming to the table with a look of confusion on his face. "What's with the basket?" he asked.

"It's a picnic basket, silly," said Hermione teasingly. "I asked Rosmerta to prepare us a picnic because it's such a gorgeous day."

"Good idea," said Harry. "Where exactly are we going?"

"You'll see," said Hermione, standing up and grabbing the picnic basket. She grabbed Harry's hand and started dragging him out of the Three Broomsticks before he could register the fact that he was holding her hand.

Just as Hermione had planned.

She slowed down after they had exited the Three Broomsticks, but made sure that he couldn't let go of her hand. It felt so good in her own, so big and warm, like her own personal shield.

She ended up taking him into a clearing a couple hundred feet into the Forbidden Forest, using her wand to transfigure a boulder into a picnic blanket.

Now that she was actually in the act of passively gaining Harry's attention, she found it easier to continue. They were both wearing short sleeves, and she deliberately brushed her arm against Harry's before sitting on the blanket, making him stop before shaking his head and sitting down across from her.

She then waited until he started reaching for the basket before doing the same herself. Their hands touched, Hermione's on top of Harry's, and Hermione intentionally let her hand rest there.

But not for long though, as Harry quickly took his hand back, a blush staining his cheeks. He cleared his throat a couple times as Hermione started handing him food, smiling as she did so.

This was all going perfectly.

---

As Hermione walked back to Hogwarts Castle after her 'date' with Harry, as it was romantic enough to call it that, she smiled and thought about how well the last couple hours had gone.

After the hand-touching incident, Harry had tried to mess with the romantic atmosphere by talking about the wedding. Hermione told him to relax because it was just such a peaceful and beautiful day, and he did so.

They listened to nature as they munched on the delicious chicken sandwiches Rosmerta had made the pair, the chirping birds and rustling leaves just adding to the vibe that it was just the two of them out there.

It was actually a pretty hot day, and as Harry and Hermione wanted to talk quietly without disturbing the nature around them, they got up and sat against the same tree trunk, their sides touching. Harry became a little awkward and nervous after that and Hermione hoped it was because of the contact.

They ate a couple ice creams a little while later, laughing and reminiscing as they did so. Harry seemed to grow a bit quiet and solemn as they did so—it seemed to Hermione that he was reliving those good times in his head. A time when they were young and naïve despite the fact that they were going up against the most powerful dark wizard of the past 300 years. A time when life seemed so simple, without love mucking it all up.

Sighing to herself, Hermione opened the door to the entrance of the castle. What she saw when she got inside shocked her.

Red hair, a speckled face, and a friendly smile. "Ron?"

A/N: I know, I know. You all hate me. I really got you all good! You really thought that it would be that easy? You don't even know what I have in store for you…*evil grin*.

Please Review!

A/N: I hope you enjoy this one,

Chapter 12 – An Unexpected Meeting

Ron Weasley sighed as he apparated to Hogsmeade. He couldn't believe that he had to do this again. It was bad enough that it had taken over eight years to accomplish his goal the first time. There was no telling how long it would take this time.

You see, as Ron grew up, he learned firsthand how unfair life could be. In school, he was poor, unwanted, and the useless wheel of the trio. And then there was his 'friend' Harry Potter: rich, famous, and a spoiled brat who got everything he wanted, like his Nimbus 2000 in his first year. Not to mention the fact that he always got what Ron wanted. Ron was sick of it by fourth year and only became Harry's 'friend' again after the dragon incident to get his revenge on the 'boy-who-lived'.

Ron had been sitting in the living room of the Burrow when Harry came in nervously. "Hey Ron, do you mind if I ask you something?"

"What is it?" he asked.

Harry cleared his throat. "I was wondering, since you still haven't asked Hermione out, if you would be okay with me asking her out?"

"What makes you say I like her?" Ron asked, disgusted at the thought of liking Hermione.

"Well, you know…fourth year when you got jealous that Viktor Krum took her to the Yule Ball and in sixth year when Cormac McLaggen ," said Harry.

"I don't…" Ron began, then realized that this was his golden opportunity. So he sighed and pretended to look away embarrassedly, when in actuality he was hiding his grin from his 'friend'. "H-how did you know?"

"It was pretty obvious, mate," said Harry, grinning. Merlin, how Ron wished to punch that stupid face in.

"I think I love her," said Ron sheepishly.

Harry's grin turned into a smile and he said, "I figured as much. I feel the exact same."

"Can you give me until the end of the week to ask her, and if I don't then you can?" asked Ron hopefully.

Harry grinned at who he thought was truly his friend. "No problem. You liked her first, so I think it's only fair."

"Thanks, Harry," said Ron with actual sincerity. Now he could put his plan into motion. If Harry wasn't there Ron would have laughed evilly.

Ron had arrived at the castle while he was reliving that happy scene. He thought it would only be a couple years until Harry left from heartbreak. It took a little longer than expected, but it did indeed happen. Ron had thought for sure that Harry would leave the country or something, and for a while it did seem that way. But now Harry was back, and back in Hermione's life, according to his mum, who heard it from Lupin. And despite all the nonsense about Harry proposing to Hannah Abbot, he knew where Harry's heart truly lie. And it was up to Ron to make sure that Harry didn't get absolutely everything he wanted.

"Ron?" came Hermione's voice from the open castle doors.

"Hermione!" said Ron with a big grin on his face, holding open his arms.

Hermione gave him a tentative hug before quickly pulling back. "What are you doing here?"

"Can we go somewhere private?" Ron asked.

Hermione nodded her head, eyebrows furrowed, and stepped into the closest empty classroom. "What is it?" she asked once the door was closed behind them.

"I was thinking…" said Ron. "Thinking about what we had together. I think…I think we should give it another go."

"Ron," said Hermione softly. "What we had was…great while it lasted, but it just wasn't meant to be. We're just…too different."

"Hermione, I've changed," said Ron a touch desperately. "I'm a better man! I can treat you better than Harry!"

"What does Harry have to do with any of this?" Hermione asked.

"Come off it," said Ron. "We both know you never really loved me."

Hermione looked down at the floor in shame. "I did love you…at one point," she finally said sadly.

"I was also there when he confessed to you," said Ron. "I heard everything."

Hermione looked up in alarm, eyes wide. "Y-you did?"

"Yes," said Ron. "And I must say it's a good thing you rejected him. He probably would have left you for some supermodel. And now…now he doesn't even love you anymore. But I…I would never do that to you. I love you, Hermione, and I always will."

---

"I love you, Hermione, and I always will," said Ron with a smile on his face.

Hermione couldn't believe this was happening and was so confused. Ron loved her, and she felt really sorry that she couldn't love him back. She didn't want to really be with him because her heart only belonged to Harry, but he was right. Harry most likely didn't love her anymore.

What should she say to Ron? She didn't know the right answer!

Calming herself, Hermione took a deep breath. Then the answer came to her.

"I'm sorry, Ron," said Hermione quietly. "I don't love you, and I think you deserve someone who loves you back."

"I don't care if you love me or not! I just want to be with you," pleaded Ron.

"Ron, I…I don't think it's a good idea," said Hermione before walking past him to the door.

When her hand was on the knob, Ron said, "You're trying to get Harry back, aren't you? Well guess what, it's never going to happen. He's over you, you blew your chance. I'm the best you're going to get. So be with me and give up on Harry!" he demanded.

Hermione burst into tears and opened the door, fleeing to her room. Ron's words hurt like a thousand little knives piercing her heart. And she didn't hate Ron for it. He was just trying to save her, to help her. And he did so by telling her what was most likely the truth. Hermione knew most of that deep down inside, but it was much worse and seemed so impossible to deny when spoken by another.

Hermione cried the rest of the night until she finally cried herself to sleep. She knew she shouldn't have gotten her hopes up. It just made it that much worse when she failed.

---

Hannah was walking through the manor on Sunday, intent on going downstairs to fix herself a snack before she would leave for the day to go shopping. But she heard a noise on the opposite side of the door of one of the guest rooms. Peeking her head in, she saw a pretty muscular and handsome man completely naked, laying on the bed.

The man grinned at her and beckoned her over, and she strangely found her feet moving toward him. His body looked delectable. But then a door slammed and snapped her out of her strange chance.

This was wrong, she couldn't do this, especially not in the house! If Harry found out she would lose all the money! "What are you doing in my house?" she asked incredulously.

"Oh, is someone feeling submissive?" asked the man with a naughty tone to his voice, standing up and stalking toward her. "Don't want the fiancé to find out?"

"No," said Hannah. "Seriously, what the hell are you doing in my house?"

"You're a very good actress," said the man. "But I can see the lust in your eyes."

Hannah did admit to herself that this man was very good looking, but it really wasn't worth all of Harry's money for one shag. So she screamed his name. "Harry! Help!"

"Pretending he's here now, are we?" asked the man seductively, pinning Hannah's body to the wall with his own. "You're so naughty, I love it."

The door burst open to show Harry, emerald eyes blazing and wand drawn. The man's face drained of all color and he stepped back from Hannah. "Y-you were serious?" he asked.

"What the hell are you doing to my fiancée?" Harry demanded angrily.

"Please don't hurt me," the man pleaded, going on his knees. "She sent me a letter asking me to sneak in and so I did!"

"Who are you?" Harry asked dangerously.

"I'm Mark…Mark Roberts," the man said, now crying. He seriously thought he was going to be maimed. After all, Harry Potter was seriously powerful…and currently angry as hell. "Hannah…she asked me to come! I work for the Wizard Gigolo Service!"

"I didn't do it, Harry!" said Hannah, eyes wide. For once, something wasn't actually her fault. "I would never do such a thing! And did it look like I was enjoying what he was doing to me?"

"I believe you, darling," said Harry, his face softening a bit. He had sent out a feeler using legilimency just to make sure she was telling the truth. He also discovered she was absolutely terrified.

"How many times did she tell you to stop?" Harry demanded, eyes burning even more fiercely.

"I don't know!" cried the man. "Three? I thought we were role-playing!"

"Why did you come here?" asked Harry again.

"I already told you! She sent me a letter!" said the man.

Harry discovered he was also telling the truth. It was pretty obvious the letter was forged. He sighed, lowering his wand. "Let me just say that maybe you should stick to clients that aren't married or engaged. It's just the right…and safer…thing to do. Now leave."

"Y-yes sir," said the man, not believing his luck. "Thank you, sir!" he said before picking up his clothes and apparating out.

Hannah let out the breath she had been holding, glad that she had survived unscathed again. Someone was trying to break her and Harry up, and she knew exactly who it was. She just didn't know they would go this far to do it.

---

The two troublemakers in question were sitting at the window with two other troublemakers, all hoping an owl would arrive in any second. This plan was foolproof, and they just knew Harry would break up with Hannah.

But evening turned to night and eventually they were too tired to stay awake. But they weren't worried. They knew Harry would have to digest the information. The owl would definitely arrive tomorrow.

But tomorrow came and went without any news about a break-up, and the four started to get worried. It should have worked by now…right?

A letter arrived the next morning during breakfast, and Raven excitedly grabbed it and tore it open before grimacing and passing it on to her sister.

Hey girls,

I hope everything is going well at school! And you better not let Quidditch interfere with your studying…trust me, I learned the hard way.

As a side note, do you two want to be our flower girls at the wedding? (Yes Raven, you'll have to wear pink.)

Love,
Dad

It was just a standard letter, and he even asked if they wanted to be participants in the wedding. Which meant that the plan definitely did not work.

They didn't understand how it could've gone wrong. It was foolproof. Leave it up to Hannah to mess up something so easy.

The girls were very surprised at how difficult this was proving to be. Maybe Hannah was smarter than they had given her credit for.

"So what do we do now?" asked Jade quietly.

"I don't know," replied Raven. "I think we—"

An owl landed in front of her and hooted, cutting her off. It was Hannah's owl.

Looking at her sister curiously, she opened the letter.

Dear Obnoxious Brats,…

A/N: Ooh, a cliffie, yay!

A/N: Thank you all for your amazing reviews! I love 'em all!

Chapter 13 - Understanding

Dear Obnoxious Brats,

Stay the hell out of my business concerning Harry. Yeah, I'm only in it for the money, and I'm sick and tired of you two trying to get in between me and the loser-boy's money. It's all mine, MINE! And you'll never get me away from it, no matter how hard you try!

It's harder than you thought playing on the big girls' court, isn't it?

Rot in hell, you little pests.

Wishing you the worst,

Hannah

Raven and Jade stared at each other in shock for a few seconds trying to comprehend what they had just read. The problem was even worse than they thought—Hannah was onto them. And she had said that they would never be able to wrest her away from their dad's money.

Then they both looked at the paper with wide eyes. They smiled at each other and started laughing as it sank into them what had just happened. Hannah was dumber than they thought: she had sent them bloody proof that she was only marrying Harry because she wanted his money! This was their golden opportunity, what they had been waiting for! And they hadn't had to do anything, Hannah had sent it to them!

"Raven?" asked Jade slowly, a grin on her face.

"Yeah?" said Raven, her face mirroring her twin's.

"She really is stupid, isn't she?" said Jade.

"Yes, Jade," replied Raven. "Yes, she really is."

Raven stood up to go show the letter to Hermione, but as soon as she had taken one step the letter turned to ashes in her hands. The girls watched the ashes slowly fall out of Raven's hands in shock. They looked up at each other, their spirits sinking quickly. They had had the proof in their hands! They were seconds away from being rid of Hannah forever! This wasn't happening, there was no way this was happening!

"Hey, losers," said Scorpius, sauntering over to the twins. "Why are you standing there like idiots staring at Raven's hands?"

Jade gave a weak chuckle before collapsing on the floor. She had been holding her breath in shock and passed out from lack of oxygen.

Raven made no move to help her sister—she just stared at her hands. She didn't watch as Scorpius called for help, and Teddy came running up. She didn't watch as the two carried her twin sister up to the hospital wing. She just blinked.

She couldn't believe how close they were, only to have failed. She was having an out-of-body experience, taking in everything and nothing at once. It was like Hannah had played the pair of them like a harp. She seemed to always be two steps ahead. Nothing they did worked, and not only that but she had just crushed their spirits and resolve with seven sentences. It really was that much worse having gotten their hopes up first.

She finally moved as the bell signaling the beginning of class rang, dragging her feet and keeping her head down as tears welled in her eyes.

---

Meanwhile, up in the hospital wing Jade had just been woken by Madam Pomfrey. "Are you alright, dear?" the woman asked.

Jade just nodded dumbly. "I-I'm fine. I just need…I need some water," she said hollowly.

Madam Pomfrey filled Jade's water glass with a quick aguamenti and handed it to the young girl, a worried look on her face. "Are you sure you're alright?"

Jade smiled at her, realizing that her previous response was insufficient. "I'm fine, really. I must've stood with my knees locked for too long."

Madam Pomfrey retreated back to her office with a few concerned looks back at her patient and closed the door. As soon as the door had closed, Jade squeezed her eyes shut to unsuccessfully try to stop the tears from coming.

---

After school, Scorpius came up to Teddy, who was sitting on one of the couches in the common room. He sat next to his friend and sighed, pulling his homework out of his bag and slamming it on the table. "It sucks to see them like that," he said, his voice breaking the silence like a gunshot in the night.

"Yeah," agreed Teddy, "it does."

They looked over at their female friends, who were sitting at a table across the common room, looking glum. They were supposed to be trying to bust out some homework before Quidditch practice started, but they didn't even have their school bags with them. Their mood seemed to be affecting that corner of the common room, making all of the kids around them seem less happy.

"We have to do something," said Scorpius.

"Yeah, but what?" asked Teddy.

Scorpius took a minute to think about it, finally saying, "It looks like we'll have to try implementing one last plan before Christmas Break all on our own. I think they're done for at the moment."

Teddy slowly nodded, replying with, "They'll be ready to go again when the break starts. There's no way they'd miss an opportunity like that."

Scorpius nodded determinedly, Teddy repeating the gesture.

Hannah smiled to herself as she paid for the new set of pin

---

k dress robes she had seen in the shop window of her favorite store. She wasn't smiling because of the purchase…well, maybe a little bit of the smile was because of the purchase, but the rest was for evil purposes.

Her little letter to the brats should've been good enough to keep them out of her hair for at least a few weeks. There's nothing worse than getting your hopes up only to have them crushed—Hannah had learned that one the hard away (but then again, doesn't everyone?).

She could imagine the piteous excuses for girls' faces right now. They would most certainly start crying…hell, Jane-or-whatever-her-name-was might even pass out! It was simply marvelous! Hannah loved the fact that she could show how smart and clever she was by successfully hurting two eleven-year-olds. It was like picking on a pair of sixth-graders!

Grinning and just barely being able to stop herself from cackling evilly, Hannah made her way back to the alley, Harry's money lining her pockets.

---

On Saturday, Harry went up to Hogsmeade as usual. He couldn't wait to spend another few hours with Hermione—it was when he felt the most comfortable and sure of himself.

Not to mention the fact that he was still completely and utterly in love with the woman. That definitely made seeing her that much better.

He couldn't deny it anymore—he really was still just as in love with her as he was the day he confessed to her. It was just too bad she didn't love him back. He had Hannah for that.

He wasn't taking advantage of Hannah, definitely not! He was just in love with both of them.

He didn't know if he should tell Hermione how he felt. If he did so and she found it awkward, it would ruin their friendship for another few years…unless she blew it off and let him off easy. That might make it easier and less awkward between them.

He sighed as he weighed the pros and cons in his head.

He ultimately decided he should tell her as soon as possible, especially considering the fact that he just couldn't hold it in any longer—he just wanted to shout it for all to hear from a mountain top! She deserved to know whether or not she returned his feelings. Not to mention the fact that it would take a big weight off his chest.

He found himself smiling as he seated himself at their usual table in the Three Broomsticks. It was ten minutes until their usual meeting time, and that ten minutes felt like ten years. And in those ten years—plus another fifteen—nobody showed up but for an old man with a raggedy cloak.

Harry frequently checked his watch over the next few hours, the amount of butterbeer bottles on his table steadily growing. At three hours after their usual meeting time Harry finally left, his head hung low and his shoulders stooped. He walked up to the castle, fearing that he may find that Hermione had been doing nothing and had just forgotten about their lunch. If that was the case then they clearly didn't mean as much to her as they did to him.

Raising his hand to knock on her door, Harry took a deep breath.

---

Hermione's crying abruptly stopped as someone knocked on the door. She had been crying because she was supposed to meet with Harry but was intentionally blowing him off, hoping that he would stop trying to see her. She had succumbed to Ron's truthful words and found herself unable to be in Harry's presence—it just hurt too much knowing that she would be that close to him and not be able to have him…and knowing that it was all her fault.

But it seems that Harry had come up to find her, which she had not been counting on. She cleaned up all evidence of her crying from her face and smiled as she opened the door to Harry, who didn't seem all that happy that she had blown him off.

"Hi, Harry," she said, hating herself for doing this to the man she loved. "What's up?"

---

Harry couldn't believe his ears. She had missed their lunch and had the gall to just nonchalantly ask 'what's up?'

"So did you have an important meeting today or something?" Harry asked through clenched teeth, already knowing the answer to his question.

"No, why?" she asked. "And what are you doing here?"

"W-what?" sputtered Harry. "What am I doing here? You're the one who missed lunch!"

"Lunch?" asked Hermione, genuinely confused. "Is today Saturday? I'm so sorry, Harry, I totally forgot!"

Harry looked down at Hermione's feet, hurt and pain welling in his eyes. "It's alright, I-I'll see you later," he said before apparating through Hogwarts's wards.

He got home and collapsed on the couch, pressing his hands into his eyes. How could he have been so stupid? How could he have really hoped that Hermione would return his feelings? How could he have even considered telling her his feelings when he was engaged to Hannah? Did he love Hermione more than he loved Hannah, his fiancée?

He was so confused! And he was angry at himself for almost breaking his vow to Hannah, who loved him with all her heart. He wasn't that type of man!

Taking a deep, calming breath, Harry assessed his options.

And came to a conclusion.

Taking out a pen and paper, he began writing to his girls.

---

Raven and Jade had just began returning to their normal selves when, one week before winter break, they received a letter from their dad. His writing was written with sharp points and the paper was indented to the point of ripping at some points, indicating that he may have been angry when he had written it.

Dear Raven and Jade,

I have great news to tell both of you! Hannah and I have decided to push up the wedding to the end of winter break! Isn't that great?

I hope both of you are doing well and I can't wait to see you on Saturday!

Love,
Dad

The twins looked at each other, not knowing what to feel. They knew they should have been feeling depressed, alarmed, and angry, but they really only felt the depression and indifference. They had been fighting a losing battle anyway—it was difficult trying to outwit an adult who had much more life experience than the pair of them combined.

It seemed inevitable that this would happen in the end.

Raven laughed and tore up the letter, tossing the pieces up to let the wind carry them away. Maybe then they could pretend they hadn't seen the contents.

"W-we have to do something," said Jade quietly, trying to grasp at straws and only saying what she felt needed to be said so they could go to sleep with clear consciences. "We can't just stand by and let this happen."

"We can and will," said Raven bitterly. "There's nothing more we can do."

"What are you talking about?" asked Jade, surprised that her sister was giving up so easily. It wasn't so odd that Jade would let something like this happen, but her sister wouldn't give up until the very end, where she still only went kicking and screaming. Her sister, who she was always looking at to show her the way and help guide her. Unfortunately, (and she would never admit this to her sister) she needed Raven a lot more than Raven needed her.

"I'm saying it's done," Raven said, tears gathering in her eyes as she gazed at her sister, who had tears building in her eyes too. "I'm saying we failed. We failed our dad and we failed Professor Granger!" she shouted.

Jade's lower lip quivered and she swiped at the tears on her face. "W-well, I see you've given up. I guess it's just me and the boys then. Because I'm going to do this for daddy."

Raven took in a shaky breath, her lips also quivering. "You're not going to guilt me into this. You're right, I've given up. We'll have to watch him with her for the rest of our lives, knowing that she d-d-doesn't l-love him l-like Professor Granger c-c-could."

"I can't believe you, Raven," whispered Jade. "You've always been the outspoken one, the stubborn one, the fiery one out of the two of us. And you're going to leave me to face this by myself?"

"I'm sorry Jade," Raven whispered back just as quietly. "But there's really nothing we can do."

She reached out a hand toward Jade to comfort her, but it just got slapped away. "Y-you…you're not my s-sister. I d-don't know you!"

And with that she turned and fled, crying harder with each of her sister's cries of her name.

A/N: Unfortunately, it gets even worse next chapter. Only a few chapters left I think, so I really am building up to the climax here this time!

Please Review!

A/N: Thank you all for your wonderful reviews!

Chapter 14 – It Somehow Gets Worse

It had been a few days since Jade had spoken to her sister and it was absolutely killing her. Never had she gone so long without spending time with her partner in crime. Scorpius (continuing in his vein of uselessness) sided with Raven after learning of the marriage being pushed up, saying that it was a lost cause.

At least she still had Teddy. Fortunately, his father was going to play the part of Harry's best man, so he would be showing up at Potter Manor a day before the wedding. If she had not yet accomplished her goal of breaking up her dad and Hannah, it would be good to have another schemer with her.

She watched from afar on Platform 9 ¾ as her sister reached their dad first, giving him a big hug. Fortunately, it seemed that Hannah wasn't there. Jade rolled her trunk over by her dad and her sister, also giving him her tightest hug. It was so good to see her dad again, especially considering the fact that she had never gone so long without seeing him.

"So, how was your last week of school?" Harry asked, his face in a big smile.

"Alright," the two girls mumbled in unison before huffing and turning away from each other.

Harry's smile faltered. "What's the matter, you two?" he asked.

Jade stayed silent as Raven answered. "Don't want to talk about it," she mumbled.

Harry studied both of them for a moment. "I see," he finally said thoughtfully. "Just promise me you two will work through it by the end of the break, okay? I'd like to see you two happy at least once before you go off again."

"We promise," the two said together again.

"All right," said Harry, holding out a hand to each girl. "Grab your stuff and one of my hands."

The girls complied and Harry turned on the spot, apparating the three of them plus the girls' stuff back home, where Raven and Jade both went to their rooms in silence.

---

Christmas came a week later and the girls still hadn't spoken to each other, and both of Jade's attempts to break the engaged couple up failed miserably. She definitely wouldn't be able to do this alone.

Hannah was the same as ever with them. When Harry was around, she only glared at them whenever she was absolutely sure Harry couldn't see her. When Harry wasn't around, she spoke nastily to them and addressed them as 'brats'.

Thus, both of them did their best to avoid her.

Christmas was the most fun Jade had had in weeks. Raven was smiling too, though they still didn't speak to each other. Both girls received a new broomstick—the Firebolt 5—along with a few books they had wanted.

And before Jade knew it, it was the day before the wedding and she had accomplished absolutely nothing. Teddy arrived along with his parents at eleven in the morning, grinning at her devilishly before looking suggestively towards Hannah.

Jade nodded firmly, giving Teddy the message that they did indeed need to make some plans. Professor Granger arrived a few hours later to receive the grand tour from her dad. There was definitely tension between them, and Jade could see the longing and love in both of their eyes. They were both idiots. Her dad never looked at Hannah like that.

The wedding rehearsal got underway at around two in the evening, giving Jade and Teddy the necessary space and time to plot. "So, what do you have?" Jade asked Teddy. Both of them were in her room, Jade on her bed and Teddy on her desk chair.

Teddy shook his head sadly. "Nothing. I did have something earlier, but seeing the way everything is going, I don't think it would work."

They sat in silence for a few minutes, both of them thinking hard, when a knock suddenly interrupted their thoughts. "It's open!" called Jade.

The door opened and Raven tentatively stepped inside. "C-can I come in?"

A small smile crept up Jade's lips. She knew the look in her sister's eye. Raven definitely had a plan.

---

After the rehearsal, Harry was walking through the manor, whistling to himself happily. Everything had gone great. He rounded the corner into a hallway and stopped dead as he caught sight of Jade on the floor, crying and holding her head, from which blood was seeping.

"Jade!" Harry cried, whipping out his wand and dropping to his knees at her side.

Jade suddenly stopped crying, looking up at Harry and grinning. She took her 'bloody' hand away from her head and licked it, showing that it was only ketchup. Harry only had just enough time to get over his shock before his wand was snatched out of his hand and he was shoved into the broom closet, the door being slammed and locked from the other side. He couldn't believe that the girls would do something like this to him, and he decided to apparate out of the closet and have a few words with them.

Only he found that he couldn't apparate. Which was odd, especially considering the fact that he could apparate through Hogwarts's wards. Then he laughed to himself as he realized two things. He couldn't apparate because he had put the strongest ward he could find on his house to prevent the press from showing up the next day, and he had also been thoroughly tricked and outsmarted by his daughters (though he didn't approve of them almost giving him a heart attack).

Jade's crying resumed a few minutes later and he heard Hermione cry her name. There was a second of silence and Harry tensed, ready to jump out of the closet door as soon as it opened. But when it did open, Hermione was shoved right into him, sending them both into a pile on the floor before the door was closed and locked again. "I can't believe they got you, too," Harry said as they both stood up, Harry flicking on the muggle lights he had had installed.

"But for what reason?" Hermione asked, confused.

"I don't know," said Harry. "Just a fun joke?"

"I don't think that's it," said Hermione, comprehension flashing in her eyes for only a millisecond.

Then the awkwardness settled in. Here they were, both madly in love with each other though Harry was to be married to another the next day and Hermione had blown him off for lunch the last time they were supposed to meet.

They both sat down on opposite walls of the closet, which wasn't saying much as their knees were only inches from touching each other. Harry met Hermione's eyes with an intense gaze, which Hermione quickly broke. "Harry, I-I'm sorry I didn't show up for lunch that last week. I was being an idiot."

Harry chuckled to himself, thinking that Hermione could never be an idiot even if she tried. And now that it had been a few weeks, he found it easy to accept her apology. "It's alright. I'm sure you had a good reason."

"You could say that," said Hermione.

The awkwardness settled back over them, and Harry fished for something to say. But Hermione found something to say before he did. "So, you really love Hannah, don't you?" she asked curiously.

"Of course," said Harry without hesitation. "Why wouldn't I?"

Hermione studied him for a moment before saying, "And she really loves you?"

"What do you mean by that?" asked Harry, the beginnings of a cold edge to his voice.

"Nothing," said Hermione quickly. "Just curious."

Harry sighed, knowing what he wanted to ask next but not knowing if he should. It could potentially damage their relationship. But Harry figured it would be better to live his life without any regrets, and so decided to ask, "What made you choose Ron over me?"

Hermione looked down at her hands, which were clasped in her lap. She decided that now was finally the right time to tell him how she felt, especially considering the fact that he was going to be wed the following day. Late was always better than never. "I never wanted Ron over you," she finally admitted quietly.

"What the hell are you talking about?" asked Harry. "You choosing Ron resulted in us not speaking for three years, in case you don't remember."

"I may have chosen Ron over you, but I never wanted anyone as much as I wanted you," Hermione said as tears gathered in her eyes. "I loved you, Harry, more than you'll ever know."

Harry felt his own eyes start to moisten. "Then why?" he asked, knowing that she would know what he was asking.

"Because I was being a fool," admitted Hermione, wiping her face. "I realized the day after you left that I had made a mistake, but I was too late to rectify it."

Harry lowered his head into his hands, rubbing his temples with his fingers. "All this time, all this time I've lived in pain and all because you were too afraid to follow your heart?"

Hermione looked down at her lap, her tears falling off her cheeks. "Yes," she admitted. "But I'm not afraid anymore. I have nothing to lose. I still love you, Harry. I'm still in love with you."

Harry sat in a shocked silence for a second, making sure he heard her correctly. "H-Harry?" Hermione asked. "Please say something."

Harry kept staring at Hermione, then couldn't help himself as a laugh bubbled up his chest and escaped his mouth. He started laughing, a bit of a mad edge tingeing it, and said, "Let me get this straight. You loved me all along, you still love me, and you've waited until the day before my wedding to tell me so?"

Hermione looked down, abashed, and weakly nodded her head. "You've got to be kidding me," said Harry. "Well, sorry Hermione, but I got over you quite a while ago," he lied. Hermione squeezed her eyes shut, cringing at the pain in her heart. "I love Hannah now, so you can just sit back and see how it feels to be the brokenhearted one this time," Harry said, trying to sound mean but only sounding pained. He just couldn't be mean to her no matter how hard her tried, and he instantly regretted the words that had come out of his mouth.

But Hermione didn't care how he sounded. She only cared about what he had just said. "Too bad she doesn't love you back," Hermione said quietly and a bit smugly. "You know she's only in it for the money, right?"

"I didn't really expect you to be the mean jealous type," said Harry scathingly, this time finding it a little less hard to be mean. "And I never thought you'd be one to actually believe Rita Skeeter."

Hermione stood up and Harry followed suit, both of them getting in each other's faces. "I'm not being mean," said Hermione. "I'm just telling the truth. I love you, Harry, and I know Hannah doesn't. And do you want to know how I know that?"

"How?" asked Harry sarcastically.

Hermione took in a deep breath and said, "Because I know your favorite color is brown, and I know you prefer coffee over tea, and I know you fly with your left hand in front of your right even though most righties fly opposite, and I know your favorite book as a kid was 'The Hobbit', and I know you hate peanuts, and I know you like watching football…I know everything about you Harry, and I could see myself spending the rest of my life with you…that's how I know I love you. Does Hannah know any of those things?" she asked, looking up into his eyes vulnerably.

Harry gazed into Hermione's eyes, seeing the truth in her words. And oh, how he desperately wanted to embrace her and tell her loved her back. All of the things she had just said she knew about him he had only told her once, and he had never even told her that he flew with his left hand in front. She loved him, she really did. And Harry realized that Hannah definitely did not know him anywhere near as well as Hermione did.

But they were getting married tomorrow, and he loved Hannah too, though not as much as Hermione. And ditching her for another woman the day before their wedding wouldn't be fair to her. So he stubbornly said, "Just because she doesn't know all of those things doesn't mean she doesn't love me. It just means that I haven't spent as much time with her as I have with you. Just face it, Hermione," he said, willing his voice not to break, "you're too late."

Hermione looked back down, and when she looked back up her face was devoid of emotion. "I hope your wedding goes well and you have a great life," she said monotonously before her face flickered into a grimace and the door burst open, her bottled magic spilling out past the barriers she had thrown up. "And when you pull your head out of your arse and realize that Hannah doesn't love you, don't worry, I won't be waiting," she said, her voice trembling.

Harry looked down to his left and Hermione let out one last, choked sob before running out of the room.

Before running out of Harry's life.

A/N: Okay, so that didn't exactly go as planned, but try as I might I couldn't get it exactly the way I wanted it.

I hope you still enjoyed it though, and I hope you leave me a good review!

A/N: Here it is, the final chapter (except for maybe an epilogue). Thanks for sticking with me throughout the story and leaving me awesome reviews! I'll miss updating this every few days, but make sure to look out for my next one!

Chapter 15 – I Only Want You to Know How Much I Love You

Raven and Jade looked at each other teary-eyed as Hannah said, "I do."

They had seen their professor run out of the closet with tears running down her face, and their dad had slowly sank down the wall onto his butt before quietly crying into his arms. It seemed that their plan had failed miserably. Their dad was now literally only two simple words away from marrying one of the biggest gold diggers on the planet.

"Do you, Harry Potter, take this woman, Hannah Abbot, to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

Raven and Jade sucked in a breath, already grimacing.

---

It was his wedding day, the happiest day of his life. Harry couldn't believe he was standing here in front of Hannah Abbot, holding her hands at the altar.

Too bad she doesn't love you back, Hermione's voice told him in his head.

The woman he was going to be spending the rest of his life with said, "I do."

You know she's only in it for the money, right?

Raven and Jade were crying in the front row, but they didn't seem to be happy tears.

Do you want to know how I know I love you?

"Do you, Harry Potter, take this woman, Hannah Abbot, to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

Because I know your favorite color is brown.

Hermione's favorite color was green.

"Mr. Potter?"

I could see myself spending the rest of my life with you.

"Harry?" asked Hannah, looking up into his eyes. And Harry saw lust, and that look one gets when they're so very close to getting what they want.

That's how I know I love you.

What if Hermione was right? Maybe it was just cold feet, but Harry wanted to be 100 percent sure that he was marrying the true love of his life, and she truly loved him back. So…he used legilimency.

Those little brats, I beat them in the end, he heard Hannah thinking to herself. As soon as he says the words, his fortune will be all mine! What an idiot. I can't wait for this blasted thing to be over, my face is starting to hurt from smiling. Money, money, money. Why is Harry looking at me like that? Is he…using…oh Merlin!

Harry's hands fell out of Hannah's and he whipped out his wand, pointing it at her face, which elicited gasps from the crowd.

"Harry, darling, w-what are you doing?" Hannah asked weakly.

"I don't know, sweetheart, why don't you tell everyone what I'm doing?" Harry said, grinning maniacally.

"You're…er…pointing your wand at my face…at our wedding," she said, the forced smile still on her face, though it was quickly turning into a grimace.

"So why don't you tell everyone why I'm doing it?" Harry said through clenched teeth. "Based on your thoughts, it sounds a lot like money, doesn't it?" More gasps came from the crowd.

Hannah looked down at her hands, which were shaking and clenched into fists. She had been so close…so close! But she wasn't going to go down without dragging someone with her. "God dammit, I'm in it for the god damn money! Are you happy? I hate you Harry Potter, I hate you so much! You're annoying and pathetic, not to mention the fact that you're…you're…lousy in bed!" She sucked in a deep breath, wishing she could’ve come up with a better line.. "All you go on about are those two girls all the time. Well, here's a newsflash for you: they're brats! They're spoiled little brats, and they've spent every second since they got into school trying to break us up!" When she finished, she was huffing and puffing and the guests were completely silent.

Harry glanced over at Raven and Jade, who were looking at their dad with wide eyes. Harry winked at them and smirked. "Well, it seems they were smarter than I was, doesn't it? And since most people who know me don't find me annoying and pathetic, I think I won't take your word on that one. Unfortunately, you're the only woman I've slept with, so what you say about me being lousy in bed may be true…but then again, you did say you hate me, so I think I'll pass on that one, too," he said as he smiled at her. That smile quickly turned into a menacing look, his green eyes flashing and his hair rustling as his magic built up. Soon it seemed as though a strong wind was racing through the room, and Harry seemed to have petrified Hannah much like a basilisk would. "Oh, and one more thing…don't you dare speak of my daughters that way. They're ten…no, ten thousand!...times the people you'll ever dream about being." By now, little sparks of magic were shooting away from Harry and hitting Hannah, giving her little shocks. "If you value your life, you'll leave right now and never enter my sight again."

There was complete silence as Harry and Hannah stared at each other before the front of Hannah's dress at about hip level seemed to get wet on its own. "Three," said Harry. "Two…"

Hannah bolted, running down the aisle and out of the doors.

And just like Hermione, out of Harry's life.

And when you pull your head out of your arse and realize that Hannah doesn't love you, don't worry, I won't be waiting.

---

Raven and Jade grinned at each other and high-fived as Hannah ran from the room, their dad's wand trained on her the whole time. It seemed as though their plan had worked better than they thought.

Their dad came up to them and hugged them both, saying, "Thanks for looking out for me, you two." They each kissed one of his cheeks, and he said, "I'll talk to you two right after I take care of something."

"Go get her, daddy," said Jade, grinning up at Harry.

"Go…what?" asked Harry, blushing. "How did you two…?"

"We're eleven, dad," said Raven. "Not five."

Harry laughed and said, "I'll try to remember that," before running out of the room faster than Hannah did.

---

Harry ran to just past the apparition wards before apparating straight to Hogwarts, just outside of Hermione's room.

Who was he kidding? He had never stopped loving her, and no matter how many times he told himself he loved Hannah, he really didn't.

And now he was here to rectify his mistake. He took a few deep breaths, trying to calm the butterflies in his stomach.

He lightly knocked on the door and, getting no answer, opened it quietly in case Hermione was sleeping for some reason. What he saw made his heart shatter into a million pieces. Ron was snogging Hermione for all he was worth, crushing Hermione's body tight against his. Hermione had her hands fisted in Ron's hair, her eyes shut in ecstasy.

Harry turned and ran, not paying attention to the desperate cries of his name from behind him.

He knew what Hermione would say. He was too late, and she had warned him. She would tell him to understand it from her point of view.

But Harry didn't want to understand any point of view. All he wanted to do was go outside, throw up, then breathe in the fresh winter air.

He hated himself and he hated Hermione. He wished he had never met her.

That's how I know I love you.

---

Approximately 5 Minutes Earlier

Hermione was sitting on the side of her bed, unable to believe that Harry was getting married to Hannah at that very moment. She was looking down at a picture of her and Harry in sixth year smiling and hugging, silent tears blotting the photograph.

"What did I tell you?" asked a voice from the doorway.

Hermione sat in silence, unable to meet Ron's eye. Ron sighed and sat next her, rubbing her back with his hand. "I told you he didn't really love you," he said.

Hermione clenched her hands into fists, crumpling the picture. "Do you really think that's the right thing to say at a moment like this?"

"It's really the only thing," said Ron, shrugging. "And now that he's married, how about giving me a chance?"

Hermione looked at Ron, shocked. "How dare you! He just got married today! You can't just expect my heart to be healed that quickly!"

"I don't give a bloody damn about your heart," said Ro, temper rising. "All I care is that you're with me. Whether you want to be or not," he said before pressing his lips against hers with such force that she was sure they would bruise.

Ron pulled her tight against his body and she squeezed her eyes shut in disgust, pulling his hair to try to get him off of her. His lips were chapped and rough, his hold on her painful.

As she battled against Ron, she heard a noise and opened her eyes just in time to catch sight of Harry running out of the room.

This was bad.

It definitely looked like she and Ron were sharing a passionate kiss. He wouldn't stick around to hear the truth. He would leave, and the longer she waited the less likely Harry would believe her. And he had ascertained the truth and skipped out on his wedding to be with her! If only…she could…get away…from Ron…!

With a burst of magic Ron was propelled backward, smashing into the wall on the opposite side of the room. The force of the impact knocked him out.

"Harry!" Hermione cried, getting up and dashing in the same direction as him.

He didn't look back—he only started running faster.

"Harry!" she called again, already panting in effort. She wasn't a natural athlete like Harry was.

She kept calling his name until he got outside. Hermione stopped at the doors and took careful aim before firing a tripping jinx at Harry, sending him sprawling in the snow, and by the time he had stood up again she had reached him, tackling him to ensure he didn't get away.

"Harry, please stop," said Hermione, gasping for breath.

"Oh, I know," said Harry, sneering. "It wasn't what it looked like," he said mockingly.

"It wasn't!" exclaimed Hermione. "I was trying to pull him off of me!"

"Right," said Harry, rolling his eyes. "I should've guessed."

"Stop being an arrogant prat, will you?" Hermione shouted in his face, tears collecting in her eyes. "I didn't want him to kiss me, okay?" she said quietly before beginning to cry, burying her face in the crook of his neck.

Harry's arms tentatively made their way around her back, keeping her safe as his heart twisted with guilt for being so mean to her just now. They were silent but for Hermione's soft sobs until Harry spoke again a few minutes later. "You were right, Hermione," he said quietly.

"When am I not?" she whispered back against his neck, still crying.

"That one time you were wrong," said Harry quietly, half a smirk on his face.

Hermione looked up at Harry, smiling through her tears even though her lips were still quivering. "When have I ever been wrong, Harry James Potter?"

Harry smiled at her. "That time you said you wouldn't be waiting for me."

"Technically, I wasn't wrong. That would've only started once you got married to Hannah," said Hermione, no longer crying but still smiling.

"No, instead I pointed my wand at her face when it was my turn to say 'I do'," said Harry, grinning at her.

Hermione shook her head before the smile slowly slid off her face and she whispered, "Harry. I think you're the most handsome and amazing guy a girl could know and I'm completely and utterly in love with you."

"You totally copied that from me," said Harry, grinning at her again.

"What can I say?" said Hermione, batting her eyelashes at him. "It's a good line."

"Please excuse me if I don't copy you copying me," said Harry, taking a second to clear his throat afterwards. "Instead, I'll say this." A deep breath. "I love you too, Hermione, I never stopped loving you, and most important of all…I'll never stop loving you."

"Harry," breathed Hermione as she tilted her head and her lips parted.

"Hermione," whispered Harry, his lips a hair's width from meeting Hermione's.

They fell together, their lips meeting, their love melding in a perfect kiss.

"I love you," breathed Harry against Hermione's lips.

"I love you too," she whispered back, smiling.

I can see myself spending the rest of my life with you…that's how I know I love you.

A/N: D'aww, they're in love!

I hope you found the ending to your liking, and if you didn't…well, I'm very sorry to hear that.

I hope you enjoyed the story, and I'm pretty sure I'll be posting an epilogue in a few days. Pretty Sure.

Please review and let me know your thoughts! (Reviews are my secret addiction)

A/N: Here it is, the final installment of 'Give Me Another Chance'! And sorry, but no revenge or any of that stuff (pure fluff!). But be ready for something along the lines of revenge in the (eventual) sequel!

Epilogue: Always You

7 Months Later

"Dad?" asked Raven as she watched him tie his tie.

"Yeah?" he said, eyebrows furrowed in concentration.

He looked in the mirror and saw his girls smiling at him. "We like seeing you so happy."

Harry smiled at them as he finished with his tie. "I'm happy that you're happy that I'm happy."

Raven and Jade laughed, somehow creepily making it sound as though only one person was laughing. "Are you nervous at all?" asked Jade after she had regained her composure.

"Me? Nervous?" asked Harry, shaking his head. "Nope. I've never been more sure of anything in my life."

"You love her a lot, don't you?" asked Jade with wide eyes.

Harry smirked at them. "Let's just say that if you two don't watch out, she'll give you a run for your money."

Raven grinned cheekily at him. "Ha ha, dad, very funny. But all three of us know that even though Professor Granger is cool, you couldn't possibly love her as much as you love us because we're the most awesome people in the world."

"That may be true," laughed Harry, "but one thing you do need working on is your modesty."

Raven stuck up her nose haughtily. "What's the point of not acting like you're the best when everyone knows you are?"

Harry laughed again, adjusting his suit jacket. "Well, girls, how do I look?"

"Great, daddy!" exclaimed Jade.

"She won't even know what hit her," said Jade.

Harry took one last glance at himself in the mirror and vainly tried to flatten his hair. "You two better head out there," he said to his daughters.

"Right," they said in unison before turning around.

But before they could leave, Harry said, "Wait, Raven." Sure turned around, looking at him questioningly. He grinned evilly. "You should wear pink more often, it definitely suits your personality."

Raven blushed madly and fisted her pink dress. She gave her dad a withering glare, grabbed her sister's arm, and marched out of the room.

Harry gave himself one more glance-over, smiled at his reflection in the mirror, and walked out to the altar. He couldn't believe that he was really getting married, and to Hermione, no less. Oh, the number of times he had dreamed of this day. It seemed like only yesterday that he had seen her for the first time in three years, and here he was less than half an hour from being wed to her...from being with her for the rest of their lives.

They had went on their first date a week after they had confessed their love to each other and Harry proposed at the end of May. And now it was August 15th and they were getting married.

The music started up again and Raven and Jade came out, Jade enthusiastically tossing flowers while Raven did it half-heartedly. Harry couldn't believe that he had actually gotten her to wear pink.

Then came Hermione, holding onto her father's arm and giving Harry the small smile she only gave him and him alone. Harry felt his vision swim as he almost fainted. Hermione looked absolutely gorgeous in her strapless wedding gown. He was glad he put on extra deodorant, or else the sweat collecting under his arms may have stained all the way through to his suit jacket. The sweat collecting on his face actually did manage to force him to push his slipping glasses back up the bridge of his nose. He was having trouble breathing as Hermione slowly walked up the aisle with her dad, her smile growing with each step until, once she had reached Harry, she was absolutely beaming.

She took her spot opposite him and raised one eyebrow, batting her eyelashes at him. He smiled at her, took her hands, and whispered, "You look absolutely beautiful."

"Thanks," she said. "You look pretty dashing yourself."

Harry smiled at her, squeezing her hands softly. She returned the gesture, and the minister began speaking. The ceremony passed in a blur, Harry pretty much running on autopilot until the minister announced, "You may now kiss the bride."

Harry grinned and swooped down, pressing his lips against Hermione's. As usual, no matter how ready for it she was, she gasped, and he took the opportunity to slip his tongue into her mouth. The crowd went wild and Hermione blushed yet returned the kiss with equal enthusiasm. Once they had broken apart, Hermione whispered, "Harry, I have some good news."

"Other than the fact that we just got married?" he teased her.

Hermione nodded. "You know how I've been feeling sick the last couple weeks?" she asked Harry, biting her lip. Harry nodded, not having a clue where this was going. "Well...er...I-I'm pregnant," she stammered, nervous despite how many times she practiced saying it to herself in the mirror.

Harry's smile seemed to freeze on his face as he digested this information. "You mean...the first night we actually did it?" he asked, referring of course to the first time they made love, out in a clearing in the Forbidden Forest under a full moon. That was a good night.

Hermione nodded, giving her husband a weak smile. He wasn't taking it as well as she thought he would.

Harry let out one weak chuckle, his eyes rolled up into his head, and he collapsed, landing face first in the grass.

---

Raven and Jade were nervous at first when their father went down, but were reassured when Professor Granger responded to their questions with a roll of her eyes and a, "He's just being melodramatic. He'll be fine. It's just something men do."

"When they get married?" inquired Jade.

"Not exactly...no," said Hermione, wishing to wait for Harry to be ready to discuss it with them.

But they were smarter than she thought. "No, you dummy," said Raven, rolling her eyes much like Professor Granger had just done. "Professor Granger is obviously pregnant."

Jade said, "Oh," while nodding her head as Hermione looked down at her midsection, where she had cast a glamour charm to hide her barely-showing stomach. She didn't see how it could be obvious to anyone.

"How did you know?" she asked her student.

"What other reason could there possibly be?" asked Raven, shrugging. "You two just got married, so there's not much else that could happen between you two other than having a child. And plus, do you see how he's smiling in his sleep?" Hermione looked over at Harry, who really did have a smile on his face. "That means it's really good news. So, marriage done plus the fact that it's really good news means that it can be nothing else than a baby."

Hermione took a second to understand Raven's logic, then nodded, impressed. "Very good," she said. "now how about we wake up your father?" She pointed her wand at said father and said, "Ennervate."

Harry woke up slowly, rubbing his eyes before gaining his bearings. He saw Hermione in her wedding dress and seemed to finally understand what was going on, standing up and brushing off his clothes. "Why was I asleep?" he asked curiously.

"Because I told you I was pregnant," said Hermione, arching an eyebrow at him.

"Oh, right," said Harry, a smile growing on his face. "That's fantastic news!" he exclaimed, wrapping his arms around Hermione in a tight hug (not too tight, of course). "Isn't that great, girls?" he asked after he had let go of his wife.

Jade nodded enthusiastically. "That's awesome!"

Raven scoffed. "Only if the baby is a girl. One foolish boy is enough for a family, don't you think?"

Hermione smiled, glad that she had been accepted by Raven and Jade so easily. "I don't know. Harry was actually more serious as a teenager than he is now."

Harry smiled sheepishly. "It's true. I found my inner child at the age of 23."

Hermione swayed her hips as she took one step up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "And I love you all the more for it," she whispered before kissing him.

Raven and Jade made mock-gagging sounds before turning and heading back into the crowd, searching for Teddy and Scorpius.

They didn't need to worry about their dad anymore. He was in good hands.

A/N: I know, that ending was kinda cheesy, lame, and overly-fluffy, but I believe that's the way an ending should be...okay, maybe without the lame part.

Thank you all very much for reading and reviewing my story! Please leave me one last review before you let yourself out!