Author's Note:

This is a rather steamy chapter.

Reviews and Comments: To LifeonEarth: First review, yay! So glad you loved the Percy scene; I felt like I needed a good Percy moment! And yes, Amos does discriminate against magical creatures and I totally believe that is canon LOL. I love Harry and Ginny being constant distractions for each other. To Daisy Johnson: (great name by the way) I think that they would have changed the name of the DRCMC after the war as well, especially once Hermione joined. To elin2002: Zee is a strong, independent woman and I love having her put men in their place LOL. To lib614: I like the idea of Charlie and Zee becoming friends and connecting over their love of magizoology and wanting to help magical creatures. I'm glad that you liked the wandless magic lesson. To scrappy8: Thank you. I worked hard on her pen name! To kittikatlova: Charlie and Zee are ONLY friends, it is definitely NOT a preclude to something more. Zee's not ready for that and Charlie would never impose on her. They are only friends. Charlie isn't the settling down type and Zee is not in a place right now to even consider a romance; it never would have crossed her mind, or Charlie's.

To Wolf's scream: Yes, World War One as I like the history of that war a lot more than I do WWII, so that's what I wanted to use. To HPLove: No, Charlie and Zee are only friends. To Vaarshneyan: Remus and Tonks will not be adopting one of the wolf kids. And yes, I do reply to PMs. To tim2604: Of course I'm teasing you, but I think this chapter makes up for it. Audrey is canon, but we don't know anything about her so I figured that I could create my own embodiment of how they met. I think that the diary will help in the future for sure and I hope it helps lead me down the right path for the final battle. To xXMizz Alec VolturiXx: Thank you! To Menna Taha: I have plans for Slughorn, just you wait. To .X: I couldn't resist having Harry make dirty jokes LOL. To Maridean: Thank you, I try to keep Hinny grounded with the war going on.

To ManyGrey: Thanks for mentioning Tom's comparison to himself as something akin to a god. At this point, he has no idea about the magical world so he would be well versed in Christian teachings and pagan god mythology, which I think would affect how he saw himself and his abilities. And it's this chapter, as promised. To Dianne: Thank you and I think I have a few twists for sixth year, I hope even a few surprises. I hope you had a great birthday! To riddermark: I agree LOL. To Melindaelo: I wanted to show Ginny having a passion for writing and I thought this was a good start to show how she becomes a journalist later on. To PurpleLotus: You're going to make my head big with all those compliments! (But please don't stop LOL) Amos is set in his ways, but I don't think he's dark; more stubborn, and he doesn't like change.

To Endinium: I love the idea of Harry picking up on Sirius-like traits without even really realizing it. There's more Remadora coming, I promise! I actually just wrote a chapter about them where a lot of it was married fluff and I love it LOL. To marcytherock: No, there is nothing between Charlie and Zee. To Kyreg: Thank you! To anika23: "One of the best fanfics I have ever read, and you get things so right and it really is beautiful" — thank you!

My posting schedule: Once a week.

Thanks to Dusk for her amazing editing skills.

As always, thank you very much for reading and please, please review!

Your reviews give me life! They give me inspiration! And they make me want to keep writing for more than just myself! Thank you for all of your continued support!

CHAPTER TWO-HUNDRED AND FORTY:

Remus looked up with a smile as his wife stumbled out of the fireplace in his office that evening. He had gotten caught up working on his lesson plan and had lost track of the time. A glance at the clock told him that he hadn't even made it down to dinner.

"Hi, Nymphadora. I was heading home in a bit, I just wanted to finish this lesson plan for Monday."

"Please, as if you're not completely prepared for the next three years."

"Sometimes they need some tweaking," he said, smiling when she moved to sit in his lap. "How was work today?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary. I spent most of the day catching up on paperwork. No new leads, nothing to go on… it was slow. I ducked out at four."

"And now it's almost seven, no wonder you came looking for me."

Tonks nodded and kissed him softly. "I expect my man waiting for me when I get home, what can I say?"

Remus chuckled and kissed her again. "I need five more minutes, ten tops, and I'm all yours."

Tonks nodded, letting out a dramatic sigh that made his lips curve in response. She stood up and wandered around his office, smiling at the defence against the dark arts books he had on the shelves and the little pictures and knickknacks that he had accumulated. Their wedding photo was hanging on the wall and her heart warmed at the sight of it. She couldn't believe that she had already been married to the incredible man before her for over a year. His whiskey coloured-eyes were staring at her in amazement in the photo. They'd move down her body and his ears would flush and then he would smile, real slow.

It was a loop she never got tired of watching.

She looked at the rest of the walls. He'd framed every page of the petition that the students had written for him two years before and hung them around his office. Tonks knew how important those words were to him; they were what made him come back year after year to teach. No one deserved those words of praise more.

Tonks snuck a look over at him. His hair was a little dishevelled from his hands and he had ink spots on his fingers as he wrote furiously over his desk. Feeling a little scandalous, she hurried back around to his desk and shimmied down before him. His breath caught when she opened his robes and slowly began to unzip his jeans.

"Dora…"

"Didn't you tell me that you wished I would do this again?" she teased, exposing him to the cool air of his office.

Remus only bit his bottom lip. "I didn't think you would actually — mmm, yes."

Tonks' tongue was sliding over him now, nipping and kissing. His hand slid into her soft pink curls and he let his head fall back. She took that as a sign to go further and she opened his jeans more, exposing him fully as she urged him to lift his hips and tugged his jeans down so that she could plant soft kisses along his balls as his hot cock brushed her cheek. She watched in fascination as the more she kissed it, the larger it grew until he was fully hard before her. She took her time, kissing and licking, sucking and nipping at him in a teasing fashion that left him panting. Her tongue stroked over the head of him, taking pride in every stroke as he whimpered softly.

"Nymphadora," he begged. "Dora, darling, please."

"Worried we might get interrupted?" she asked between licks. "Worried you might come in front of one of your colleagues again?"

"Nymphadora," he hissed.

Tonks only increased the pressure, licking and sucking in rapid succession before slowing down to nuzzle and stroke as much of him as she could. She kissed just under his head, licking softly and he gasped her name, his fingers tightening in her hair. Tonks sucked him back into her mouth, taking him in as deep as she could, using her hand to stroke the rest of him as she worked him. She knew that he was right on the edge, she felt that little tremble that told her he was about to finish and she slowly let go, shimmying up his body to straddle him in the chair, his cock pointing straight up as she pinned it against his stomach.

Remus let out a slow breath. "Nymphadora…"

She leaned in and tugged his mouth down to hers, kissing him deeply and slowly, angling herself just right so that she could feel his heavy balls under her as his trembling cock pressed against her stomach and between her legs. Her tongue met his, gliding back and forth in slow strokes as she gently pressed against his cock.

"Let me come," he begged, tearing his lips from hers.

Tonks licked her lips. "Not yet."

Remus watched as she slowly unbuttoned her light blue dress shirt, revealing that she hadn't worn a bra that day. He bent his head to engulf one of those sweet breasts into his mouth, tickling her nipple. Her fingers slid down and gently stroked his length, teasing his tip.

"Don't come yet," she whispered as she teased him. "Not until I say."

Remus worked her breast harder as he sucked furiously, sending a wave of pleasure straight through her.

"Oh, Merlin, yes," she cried.

Remus made quick work of her trousers, tugging them down before he started to remove her knickers. Tonks stopped him, dragging his lips back to hers for a long, searing kiss, and then she slid back down to the floor. Her hair was mussed from his hands, her lips swollen. She wore her black combat boots with her black leather trousers bunched at her ankles. Her yellow cotton knickers were still in place and her dress shirt opened, revealing her perky and aroused tits. She kept her eyes on him and then she took him back in her mouth.

He groaned at the touch as she licked the head of him in a circular pattern. She moaned as she did, her tongue changing angles, and when she sucked on the underside of him, he slapped his hands on the desk in front of him.

"Fuck!"

Tonks slowly moved her mouth away from him and smiled. "Come for me."

Her mouth barely covered him before he did just that, roaring her name in need as he finished over and over and over again. It was only when he finally caught his breath, his hand brushing her shoulder, that she let him go, gently kissing his now flaccid penis.

Remus tugged her up and lifted her onto his desk, shoving his papers aside. He pulled her boots off, then her trousers before he pulled her knickers down and spread her legs wide. His eyes twinkled at her before he pushed his desk chair closer and simply lowered his head and feasted on her.

Her shirt draped off her shoulders as she propped her hands up behind her to try to give her leverage as his tongue destroyed her. She panted his name as he kissed and licked her and when he curled that tongue around her clit, she cried out incoherently. Remus lapped at her, sucking and stroking and when he finally added a finger, she lost it. She moved one hand out from behind her to grip his hair and pushed him closer and then she desperately arched her hips into his mouth.

As she came, she cried out in guttural pleasure, and he kissed his way over her vibrating body to suckle her breast, a pleased smile on his face.

Tonks collapsed back against his desk, too weak to hold herself up. "I forgot to put a silencing charm up."

Remus kissed her knees. "Me too. I think we're far enough away for it not to be a problem — I hope," he added, using his wand to silence the room this time around. He kissed her calves, soft nips behind her knee, near her ankle, and back up to her thighs for soft nips.

"It's been much too long since we had a proper go in your office," Tonks told him.

Remus chuckled, kissing the tops of her thighs. "That it has." His hand slid up her hips to cup her breasts. "On the desk or in my chair?"

Tonks' eyes twinkled at him. "Who says that we have to choose?"

Remus stood up, shoving his jeans and boxers down to his ankles and tugged her close to him. He used a cushioning charm on the desk and then wrapped her legs around his waist and slowly slid into her. Tonks moaned at the contact, her back flat against the desk as he milked her with his cock in slow succession.

"Mmm, my naughty professor likes to shag me on his desk," she murmured.

Her words only made him move faster, crawling onto the desk to change the angle and as he filled her more completely, she cried out in ecstasy and thought that she was rather glad she had gone to find her husband.

She certainly wouldn't have enjoyed herself so much at home.

~ ASC ~

Theo grinned when Ciara plopped down next to him on the sofa in the Slytherin common room that evening. He draped an arm over her shoulders.

"Hi, little duck."

"Hi, Uncle Theo."

Theo's cheeks flushed a bit at her statement. "I think it's so sweet that you call me that."

Ciara smiled at him. "Well, you are practically my uncle. Uncle Finn has never been so happy as he is with you."

Theo's smile widened. "Good. How's second year treating you?"

"It's pretty cool. Professor Sprout says that we get to work with Mandrakes soon."

"Loud little buggers."

"I'm excited. I think it will be fun."

"Then it will be," Theo told her. "How are your friends?"

"Good. Julian got detention already. He kept using a tickling charm on me in class and Professor Flitwick gave him ten points for flawless execution, but detention for using it on a student during a lesson."

Theo chuckled. "That sounds like Flitwick. How was the rest of your summer? Did you like France?"

She nodded. "It was so beautiful. I loved the city of Paris. Dad took us all over and we did lots of shopping! Did you get my postcards?"

"I did. It looked like you were having a great time. Shopping in Paris sounds brilliant."

"It was."

Theo kept the smile on his face as he listened to her little adventures. She wasn't so little anymore, he noted. She'd grown a bit in height and he could see that she was growing up. She had just turned twelve in July and he suddenly felt himself nostalgic for the sweet little girl. The thought of her growing up and dating anyone made him nervous and a little protective.

When Mila and Julian returned to steal her away, Theo began to mentally tick off all of the things that he wanted to tell Finn. He wondered what his boyfriend was doing to pass the time. He couldn't wait to see him tomorrow. The last six days had dragged by and even though he had received a letter from Finn every day, it just wasn't the same. He had only been back at school a week and he missed Finn desperately.

He said goodnight to Ciara and her friends and made his way downstairs to his dormitory. Theo snuck a look at Draco's closed bed curtains and worry flooded him once more.

He hated this.

He hated that he couldn't go across the room and talk to his best friend.

No, he could, it was just that he knew it was safer if he didn't.

He couldn't imagine the stress that his friend must be feeling. He was stressed for him. The only thing he did know is that despite how much of a git he was, Draco was a good person and not capable of the evil that the Dark Lord wanted him to do.

He just wished that he knew a way to get his friend away from it all before he did something that he would regret.

~ ASC ~

Ginny pulled Ron aside before breakfast on Saturday morning, ignoring his moaning about starving to death.

"I need two minutes, you won't die," she insisted.

Ron gave her an annoyed look, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "Fine, what?"

"I'm great this morning, dear brother, and how are you?"

"Starving," Ron said. "What do you want, Ginny?"

"I want to talk about the letter from Healer Mulroney."

Ron's blue eyes looked bewildered. "Why? Do you think I missed something?"

Ginny shook her head. "No. I just think it's interesting. I mean, you wanted to know who it was and now you do, but you still don't know anything about him."

"I know I have dreams about his life, that's all I really need to know, isn't it? I just wanted to know if it was normal for me to dream these kinds of things after what happened. Mulroney warned me that there would be side effects and if this is the only one, well, I'm not going to complain. And no, I haven't had any more dreams since we came to school."

Ginny's brown eyes stayed on his. "Well, I want to know more. I think it's fascinating and the idea that they were studying why he had no questions or qualms about finding magical creatures is interesting. I think there's more to this man's story and well, I think that I want to know what it is."

Ron's eyebrow rose. "What? Like research him or something?"

"Exactly!" Ginny said, smiling at him. "I want to know more about who this man was and to do that, you need to tell me about any and all dreams you may have about him, okay? I'm going to figure out the rest."

Ron looked baffled by this. "But why? Do you think it will stop the dreams?"

"I don't know," Ginny told him. "But I think a better understanding of who the man was might help you sleep better at night. Aren't you curious, Ron? I mean, really, even a little bit?"

He shrugged, his hands automatically rubbing his arms where the brain scars were hidden under his white dress shirt. "I suppose I am, a little bit. I just don't know what learning about him will do."

"Maybe nothing," Ginny said, "But finding out will still be interesting."

Ron let out a sigh and nodded. "Fine. I promise to tell you anything I dream about in terms of the life and times of Michel Murray and you can go find out whatever you want."

Ginny beamed at him. "Thanks, Ron. You never know, it might make a fascinating story for you to tell when people ask you about the scars."

Ron rolled his eyes. "Why? Are you trying to tell me that because I was stupid and summoned them isn't a good enough story?"

"You were cursed and confused, Ron. You can't be held responsible for summoning brains to you when you hardly knew what was up and what was down."

He nodded, his ears flushing at that. "Thanks, Ginny. You always seem to know what I need to hear."

"And I always will," she promised him. "Especially when you're being a prat and need a good swift kick in the arse."

He chuckled and draped and arm over her shoulders. Since Ginny was almost half a meter shorter than him, he had to bend down a little to do so. "Sisterly job requirement, I suppose."

Ginny snorted at that as they headed into the Great Hall for breakfast. She kissed Harry's cheek before she sat down and began to fill her plate with eggs, bacon, and grilled potatoes.

"Glad you're both here," Harry said, his eyes on his girlfriend and his best mate. "I just posted the try-outs for a new Chaser up on the board. It's going to be next Saturday after lunch, I already booked the pitch with Madam Hooch and I've already booked us in for Quidditch practices every Monday and Wednesday from seven to nine and every Saturday morning from eight to twelve."

"Anxious much?" Neville asked as he poured himself some pumpkin juice.

"You just don't get Quidditch, Nev," Harry told him. "We have to be at the top of our game and to get there, we need to make sure that we do everything right. If I don't book the pitch early, the other teams will grab it and we can't have that. That includes practicing as much as we can and making sure that we're in peak physical form. Plus, depending on who we find as our new Chaser, it may take a bit to break them in. I already told Katie, Ritchie, and Jimmy this morning and everyone is on board."

"Sounds good to me," Ginny told him. "It will be nice to get back into a regular regiment."

"And to hear your make your formal declaration," Harry said, his eyes twinkling. "I want it to be nice and loud so that everyone knows exactly what the truth is."

Ginny scowled at him and he only smiled wider. "I hate you."

Harry chuckled and kissed her earlobe, nipping at the tiny silver hoop there. "Nah, you don't."

"What are you declaring?" Hermione asked, looking at them both curiously.

"We finally had that broom race at the end of the summer," Harry said. "And I won."

Ron smirked. "I knew you'd win! You were the youngest Seeker in over a century! There's no way that Ginny would have beat you!"

"It was close," Harry admitted. "And we decided that I may be the better flier, but she's the superior player."

"Damn straight," Ginny said, stabbing her eggs a little more violently than necessary.

"But she still has to make it known to everyone, very loudly might I add, that I'm the best flier, and she has to say it wearing whatever stupid attire I choose."

Ginny scowled again. "Did I mention I hate you?"

Hermione smiled. "That sounds very entertaining. And when does this declaration take place?"

"Originally we said the first match of the season, but I'd be good with it being done at try-outs next Saturday."

Ginny's brown eyes met his. "Fine, but then we won't speak of it again."

Harry's eyes twinkled. "Wait until you hear my ideas for what you're going to wear."

Ginny's elbow fell strategically into his lap and her face changed into an expression of horror as his breath left him, but her eyes were twinkling at him mischief. "Oh, my, what a crazy random happenstance!"

Ron snorted pumpkin juice out of his nose as he laughed. "This should be interesting."

~ ASC ~

Crouch winced at the sound of Bellatrix's high-pitched shriek as it echoed throughout the corridor. He knew that the sound meant one thing and one thing only — she had failed to become pregnant, again. His eyes met Rabastan's in the seat next to him and he only raised his tea cup.

"How dreadful for her."

Rabastan chuckled. "Terrible. You know, Bart, I've been thinking more and more about what we talked about a few weeks back and I think that we do need to get a handle on it."

"On what exactly?" Crouch asked.

"On making sure our bloodlines don't die out," Rabastan said strongly. "I'm going to be thirty-seven and it's about time I become a father, don't you agree?"

Crouch looked pensive at the thought before he nodded. "I do think it is a wise decision. Who will you choose?"

"Alecto seems the most obvious choice, but she's almost as bat-shit as Bellatrix, not to mention that she and Amycus are a bit too close for comfort."

"They deny the rumours," Crouch said. "But the fact that I've seen her suck him off almost every evening still counts as incest in my book. They don't exactly hide it or do it in the privacy of a bedroom. She gets off on people watching her do it. It's no wonder his wife won't let him near the house."

"Exactly," Rabastan said. "Which doesn't leave much left in our inner circle. There's Calypso I suppose, but we went to school together and I don't think she's ever really forgiven me for that time I shagged her and then told everyone she was easy. And Fields isn't a name on the Sacred Twenty-Eight."

"She's still a Pureblood," Crouch said. "The Sacred Twenty-Eight is the list of noble purebloods more than anything, but there are still a few others who fit the bill. The other option would be to look outside of our inner circle. Find yourself a young bride and plant your seed in her."

Rabastan nodded. "True. We should talk to the Dark Lord about it. He might have a plan or a suggestion in getting us to stop our bloodlines from dying out. There's always Kata."

"The whore whose child we took? True, she is a pureblood and as she is from Eastern Europe and not Britain, she wasn't mentioned on the Sacred Twenty-Eight," Crouch admitted. "Though, I don't know how much Woodrow will let you have her. He still shags her almost every day. Parkinson has a daughter who would be coming of age and so does Greengrass, he has two. Avery has a granddaughter I think. I heard Bulstrode's daughter has a face like a pig, but generous curves, she could be shoe-in, especially since her father's dead."

"Something to consider anyway," Rabastan agreed. "Let's see what the Dark Lord has to say."

Crouch followed him out of the parlour and down into the grand ball room of the Avery Estate which the Dark Lord had turned into his personal throne room. They'd moved to the twelfth century Irish castle a few days ago as it offered more dungeon space and gave them a change of pace. Lord Voldemort was sitting on his throne, Nagini curled up next to his chair as he drank a glass of Merlot and read the Daily Prophet.

"My Lord," Crouch said reverently, bowing before him. "If you have a moment, Rab and I would like to speak with you about something."

Voldemort merely gestured them forward with his hand but didn't look up. Once they stood before him, he conjured two straight back chairs for them to sit in. "What's on your mind?"

"It was my idea, my Lord. Bart and I were talking about the pureblood lines and how, well, to be frank, my Lord, we're dying out. Bellatrix not being able to reproduce is only one example."

"Yes," Voldemort said slowly. "The thought has occurred to me as well. We cannot have a world that will flourish under those who deserve it most if those who deserve it are not around."

"Yes," Rabastan said eagerly. "I was thinking, perhaps you could allow us to find pureblood women to breed with and marry — if you see fit, of course. But there are women out there who have yet to have children and who could help us pass down our noble family names."

"I suggested that Parkinson, Bulstrode, and Greengrass all have daughters and Avery has a granddaughter. Fields is still single, as is Alecto and well, there's always Kata."

Voldemort smirked slightly. "Ah, the woman who let's say, helped give me life, she is a particular specimen, isn't she? Though I do think Woodrow holds her in high regard, perhaps he can plant a baby in her himself if we give her some fertility potions."

"Exactly, my Lord," Rabastan said. "Let us build our noble bloodlines once more, let us give them a promise of tomorrow."

"I agree with that sentiment," Voldemort said slowly. "I think it should be discussed in more detail. It's about time our young bucks start proving themselves. And don't worry about Bella, she will find herself with child eventually."

Rabastan smiled at that and bowed reverently. "Yes, my Lord."

The meeting was called for an hour later as Voldemort outlined his plans for them to start producing pureblood heirs. He demanded that Woodrow was to impregnate Kata and in the meantime, no one else was to touch her. Woodrow seemed pleased by this and promised to put a child in her belly immediately.

Greengrass said that he agreed with the sentiment, but his daughters were still young and he would look into making sure they had arranged marriages when the time came. His eldest son was twenty-one and named Gareth for his grandfather; Octavius claimed that he was already engaged to a young pureblood witch from France by the name of Giselle Bonaccord.

"As you know, my Lord, finding purebloods in Britain is becoming harder to accomplish. Gareth met her in Paris and she attended Beauxbatons. Her family can be traced back through the centuries and it was her ancestor, Pierre, who was the first Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards. She comes from a very loyal and pureblood family," Greengrass insisted.

Voldemort nodded. "Good, and it is sad to say that we're forced to look outside of our noble English home, but a pureblood is still a pureblood no matter what country they come from. Titus, your granddaughter is of marriageable age by now, is she not?"

"Yes, my Lord. She just turned eighteen. Aeliana would be honoured if I were to find her a husband. As you know, her parents were both killed in the first war and my grandson Aelius just married last year to Dolohov's niece Dasha. They are expecting their first child."

"That is welcoming news indeed, Titus, my old friend. Do any of you share similar news? Calypso, you should be with child yourself, as should you, Alecto. Time is of the essence here. Macnair, don't you have a granddaughter as well?"

"Yes, my Lord," Macnair said reverently. "Three of them and one grandson."

"Three of them? Well, then you are blessed," Voldemort said coldly. "Now it is your duty to breed them accordingly. Is your grandson married?"

"No, my Lord," Macnair said. "He's only thirteen. And my youngest granddaughter will be writing her NEWTs this year. But Beatrice is twenty and Josephine twenty-two and they would both be honoured to give birth to pureblood heirs, my Lord."

"And your youngest granddaughter, Macnair?"

Macnair swallowed. "She only just turned seventeen, my Lord. Her name is Selena."

"She will also be ready to breed then," Voldemort said coldly. "We need daughters to plant our seeds and we will have them. Rowle, your sister Lydia has two daughters, doesn't she?"

"Yes," Thorfinn Rowle answered, his voice reverent. "Lydia married our cousin, Timothy Rowle and they have two daughters: Ophelia is a sixth year at Hogwarts and Olivia is twenty. My sons, Caleb and Abel, are both of age now themselves; you sent them to do reconnaissance in London."

"I did," Voldemort said, nodding. "They will have to find pureblood wives as well. These old names cannot be forgotten. Bart, you are the last Crouch, you must carry on your name. Lucius, your son Draco is the last Malfoy, an arranged marriage will be made for him as well if necessary when he comes of age. If he proves himself with his tasks, of course."

"Thank you, my Lord," Lucius said.

Parkinson raised his wand. "My Lord, I was in the process of arranging a marriage between my daughter, Pansy and Goyle's son, Gregory. However, his widow has been giving me grief about it since Goyle died in June."

"Crabbe, you know Agnes Goyle; convince her to let the marriage pass. Castor, you should try to have another child yourself so that the Parkinson name will live on. Your wife died many years ago," Voldemort told him. "It's time to try again for a son."

Castor nodded. "Yes, my Lord."

"What other British families are still pure of blood?" Voldemort demanded.

"Ledbury," Lucius said slowly. "Their not exactly noble and poorer than the Weasleys, but they are purebloods. Their son Holden is a seventh year at Hogwarts and a Slytherin prefect. Not to mention the Lee family, their son Barnaby works in the DRCMC and he's the last of the Lee family line. Meads has a daughter as well, I've seen her at the Ministry. She works in the maintenance department, her name is Gertrude."

"Wasn't Meads that family who produced Squibs?" Crouch asked.

"Yes," Lucius said. "But Gertrude comes from the cousins on the Lestrange side and they are not associated with that kind of scandal."

"Scarlett Lympsham is pureblood," Abraxas said. "She's two years below Draco and I know her family has some questionable choices in the bloodline, but her father's side is staunchly pure and he married the last of the Fawley blood."

"Lofthouse," Macnair said. "Xander and his sister Marian, both of the right age."

"The Bole Family has Lucian and Laura, both are in the right age bracket as well," Titus said. "Though I think one of them married recently?"

"Laura did," Woodrow replied. "It was in the Daily Prophet. She married Peregrine Derrick, another non noble pureblood."

"Nobility does matter to some extent," Voldemort interrupted. "But it's about the bloodline more than the aristocracy. My mother's family, as you know, is descended from Slytherin himself and yet his nobility and aristocracy lost everything centuries ago. Does that make the Slytherin bloodline less pure?"

"No, my Lord," they answered in reverence.

"Amycus, how old are your twin daughters now?" Voldemort demanded.

"Fifteen, my Lord," Amycus said, bowing his head. "They're in fourth year at Hogwarts, Flora and Hestia."

"A little young, but they could be mothers themselves."

"Their mother wouldn't allow it, my Lord. She doesn't allow me any contact with them since I escaped prison."

Voldemort sneered at him. "We'll make sure that you see your daughters, Amycus, and if necessary, breed them out. Now, we have names and ideas in place, it's time that those of you who are able, go out and make pureblood children. I will have Severus brew fertility potions immediately. I expect by Yule that all of you will at least have someone lined up. The blood needs to be kept pure and that needs to be remembered. We won't let the old family names disappear forever."

"And you, my Lord?" Bellatrix asked. "What about the Gaunt family?"

Voldemort stroked a finger down her cheek. "Always looking out for me, aren't you, Bella? The Gaunt family will be remembered for something much bigger, I assure you. Bart, I want a word."

Everyone began to disperse from the throne room, but Crouch stayed in his seat, his eyes on Voldemort. Once they were alone, Voldemort spoke softly.

"I know you have no interest in finding a wife, my boy. You were made for so much more than to marry, but you must produce an heir. I know that you would like a son to one day bestow your wisdom upon; to be the father yours never was. I want you to find yourself a woman and to plant your seed, will you do this for me?"

"Yes, my Lord," Crouch said, moving to kiss his hand. "I would be honoured."

"Good," Voldemort said. "The more purebloods we have coming into the world, the better the world will become. No go, find yourself a woman worthy to carry the Crouch heir."

Crouch nodded and smiled before he bowed once more and left the Dark Lord alone in the throne room. He knew that this was a task they would all do willingly. All of them wanted the chance to have children to lead them into the future, the future they were going to bring forth under the Dark Lord's reign.

And it was going to be glorious.

~ ASC ~

Theo waited patiently in the front courtyard of the castle, his eyes on his watch. Finn was supposed to be arriving at one that afternoon to take him somewhere for the day and he had been waiting not so patiently all week to see his boyfriend. When his watch struck one, his eyes lit up as he looked out across the bridge and his face fell when he didn't see anyone. But then he heard the familiar crack and he saw Finn's regal form walking across the bridge.

Theo was running towards him before he could stop himself, throwing himself into Finn's arms. "Fuck, I've missed you!"

Finn held him close, his face burrowing into Theo's neck. "I've missed you, too. More than you can know." He cupped his face tenderly and kissed him softly. "Shall we be off?"

Theo nodded, taking Finn's hand in his. "Yes, please."

Finn pulled him back into his arms and Disapparated with a loud crack. They appeared a moment later outside of Norfolk Manor and Theo grinned.

"You brought me home?"

"I figured it was the most simple place to go for now."

Theo only nodded in agreement and led Finn through the gate and into the house. He said a brief hello to Kiki, pulling Finn up the stairs and into their bedroom suite, kicking the door closed behind them. He sat on the settee, tugging Finn down with him and onto his lap.

Finn smiled and brushed his lips across Theo's. "Tell me everything."

Theo stroked his fingers through Finn's soft blond hair lovingly. "After."

Then he tugged him close to kiss him again.

The kiss was exactly what they both needed: Long and slow, both clinging to each other as if it had been years rather than a measly week since they'd last seen the other. Theo kissed the tips of his ears, sucking on the lobes before trailing his lips down Finn's neck as he unbuttoned his silk shirt. He stopped for a moment, his hands on the shirt.

"Is this mine?"

Finn blushed. "I told you, I've missed you."

Theo smiled. "I thought it looked a little tight on you. I don't have as many lovely muscles."

"You're perfect," Finn said, kissing him again and unbuttoning Theo's shirt in turn.

Hands roamed over bare skin and Theo's lips brushed across Finn's nipples, sucking and licking them as Finn groaned above him and then Finn was standing and pulling Theo to his feet. He undid his trousers, sliding them down his hips, followed by Theo's boxers and Finn's hands immediately slid down to cup his backside. Theo sighed into him, kissing his boyfriend's shoulders as his hands made quick work of the leather trousers Finn wore, tugging them down. His hand immediately took hold of the hard shaft as it bounced free and he held it tightly, squeezing firmly.

"Merlin, I've missed you," Theo murmured.

Finn nodded in agreement as Theo sat back down on the settee, tugging Finn's hips towards him. He nuzzled the hard cock a moment and then he simply guided it into his warm mouth. Finn groaned at the contact, his hands moving into Theo's hair as he suckled him. Theo let his hands roam around Finn's incredible arse, all hard muscle and delicious glutes that reminded him of how much he wanted to ride that arse. He kissed Finn's balls tenderly, taking them into his mouth to slowly suck them as Finn panted above him. He rolled them in his mouth and then gently kissed the tip of Finn's beautiful cock and smiled up at his boyfriend.

"I want to be inside of you."

Finn made a noise of agreement and tugged Theo back to his feet. Theo expected them to head to the bed, but Finn had obviously decided that it was too far, because he tugged Theo to the ground, summoning the jar of coconut oil, and Theo eagerly began to massage it into Finn's arse. Theo sighed in pleasure at the feel of his fingers brushing his boyfriend's behind, slipping in and out slowly, each stroke slowly dipping inside a little deeper than before until he bent his head and began to use his tongue.

Finn groaned his name and when Theo slid his nails gently across his balls as his tongue dove into him, Finn's wings erupted. Theo grabbed the oil and rubbed it into his own aching cock before he leaned forward and pressed a kiss to Finn's wings just as he slid into him.

Theo cried out at the sensation, glorying in how good it felt to be buried inside of the man he loved once more. He held himself in place a moment, letting Finn's fluttering wings brush his face as he kissed them tenderly and then he reached forward, held his boyfriend's hips with both hands and began to ride him.

Finn groaned his name, his hands digging into the carpet beneath them tightly and Theo rode him harder and deeper, each thrust making him feel more and more powerful. Then suddenly Finn was pulling away and rolling over to sit up. He pulled Theo into his lap and guided Theo's cock back into him, changing the angle, and Theo moaned as he held Finn's legs up over his shoulders and shagged him.

Finn's cock and balls slapped between them with every thrust and it was enough to push Theo over the edge. He panted Finn's name as he came, collapsing on his back next to him and running a sweaty hand over his face from the exertion of the shag. He smiled when Finn's fingers began to play with his arse and it wasn't long before his own legs were shoved up high and that thick beautiful cock filled him and he felt like he was finally home.

Once they were sated against each other and a little rug-burned, Finn carried Theo to his bed where they snuggled into the satin sheets. Theo happily lay like the little spoon as Finn held him close, his lips gently brushing Theo's shoulder.

"I really did miss you," Theo whispered. "And not just the sex part."

Finn kissed his shoulder again. "I know, me too. I miss waking up beside you. I miss kissing you good night and good morning. I miss holding you."

Theo sighed as Finn's fingers gently traced a pattern over his stomach. "I don't know if I can survive this only-seeing-you-once-a-week thing."

"You can. It will be hard, on both of us, but we can do it. The letters help, don't they? I always smile when I see Morrigan returning with news from you."

"They do help," Theo admitted. "But I also can't put everything I want to tell you in a letter, can I? What if it's intercepted?"

"Morrigan is a special owl, remember? She was blessed by Morrigan herself and she can travel faster than a normal owl."

"Really?" Theo asked in amazement.

Finn nodded. "Yes, that was part of her blessing. You can send anything with her and it will get to me safely, I promise."

Theo seemed a little relieved by that, he turned to lie on his back as Finn's fingers continued to gently play with the curly dark hairs under his navel. "What have you been up to all week?"

"As I said, mostly guard stuff. I've been working a lot of the night shifts as of late. My bed is lonely without you."

"I told you, you can stay here at the Manor," Theo said.

Finn shook his head, pressing a kiss to Theo's flat stomach. "No, I won't. The last thing I want is to sleep in this bed without you. I will stay here only with you."

"But if you ever need somewhere to go, promise me you'll come here?"

Finn continued to plant kisses along Theo's stomach. "I promise. Now, let me show you how much I've missed you."

"Didn't you already?" Theo asked.

Finn smiled, his head moving lower as his fingers brushed the curly hairs. "Only one of the many ways I dreamed about." His mouth brushed across Theo's growing cock and Theo sighed.

"Fuck, I love you, Finley. I love you so bloody much."

Finn's red lips only wrapped around his erection and Theo groaned. And then he was lost in the world that only Finn could bring him to, pleasure so intense that it was like he felt nothing but pleasure and his world was nothing but glowing colours and embers. He came to as he watched his boyfriend swallow every drop and he gently brushed Finn's golden blond hair out of his eyes.

Finn kissed his way up Theo's chest, sucking hard on the pulse in his neck before he smiled warmly at him. "Let's go have a nice bubble bath and clean up. We can talk more in there."

Theo nodded. "As soon as I can feel my legs, absolutely."

Finn laughed and picked Theo up as if he weighed nothing and carried him into the bathroom bridal style.

Theo batted his eyelashes dramatically. "Oh, my big strong man."

Finn chuckled and sat him on the edge of the large tub. Theo moved to fill up the pool-sized tub, dropping one of the bath bombs Ginny had made for him into the water. It smelt of mint and citrus and turned the water a fizzy blue, gold, and pink glitter.

"That looks like an explosion," Finn said.

Theo grinned at him. "But it will feel great and we'll both smell fantastic."

Finn nuzzled Theo's shoulder. "You always smell fantastic."

Theo kissed him softly before he lowered himself into the pool. Finn slipped in next to him, shutting off the taps as he did so and tugging Theo close. The tub had a generous sized seat that still allowed one's shoulders to be below the water. Finn made himself comfortable on the seat, holding Theo close against him.

"Now, tell me everything," he said, kissing Theo's cheek.

Theo did.

He told him all about that first night with Draco and how his friend had subtly been avoiding him and Blaise since; how Draco had been intentionally placing himself between Crabbe and Goyle who were bulky and great bodyguards; explained how worried he was and how Draco only seemed to be slipping further away from them. He told him about his classes and how he had dropped them down to a lower number. He told Finn how he thought that he wanted to be part of the Ministry of Magic for good and how much he was liking his role in the Wizengamot. He explained how he had decided to stay in International Magical Relations along with Defence Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, Transfiguration, Ancient Studies, and Advanced Arithmancy. He told him about what he had learned that first week in all of his classes; about Ciara and her friends and how Julian had used a tickling charm on her and gotten detention. By the time he had finished, the fizziness had died down in the bath causing them to just be in a mess of coloured water now.

"I know that you're worried about Draco," Finn told him. "I know that nothing I say will ease that worry, but I think that you need to let him be. I know that's not what you want to hear, Theo, but it's in our best interest to do so. He's been tasked with killing you, mo grá, and just the thought… I won't lose you."

"He won't hurt me," Theo insisted.

Finn's eyes sharpened. "He could hurt you. I know you don't want to believe that. I know the possibility isn't something that you even want to consider, but he could hurt you. He has been put into an impossible situation and no matter how much his heart may be in the right place, when people are put into that kind of corner and forced to choose between their own life and someone else's… sometimes that will to live is stronger than anything else."

"No!" Theo insisted. "He wouldn't! Finn, you don't know him like I do."

"You're right, I don't know him, not like you do. Just promise me that you'll be careful. He can't be trusted right now, not really."

"If I could save him and I… there has to be a way, Finn."

"There could be," Finn admitted. "But until we know what it is and how to save him, you need to be cautious. He has the Dark Mark and he has dangerous tasks ahead of him. It's safer for both of you if you stay your distance from each other. Can you do that?"

Theo hesitated. "I can't promise to stay away from him, not like you ask, but I promise to be cautious and if anything seems wonky, I'll find help."

Finn nodded, pressing his lips to Theo's temple. "That's all that I ask."

Theo reached around to grab the citrus shampoo that Ginny had made him and grinned at Finn before he slid off the little water seat of the tub and dunked himself into the bath. He tossed his wet hair back before he poured some of the shampoo into his hand and began to massage his head. Finn immersed himself under the water as well, swimming closer to take up the massage, and Theo sighed in pleasure before he took his turn washing Finn's hair. They rinsed off and then washed each other slowly in between long kisses and firm strokes. When the water turned cold, Theo stepped out and used a big towel to dry off. He dried off Finn as well and couldn't help but lick a water droplet off of Finn's abs.

"I'm starving," Finn admitted as he wrapped the towel around his waist.

Theo called for Kiki, who immediately promised to bring them some food. They headed back into the bedroom and made themselves comfortable on the large bed, both still dressed only in their towels.

Finn told Theo about what was happening in Tara and the types of training that the guards had been doing as of late. He explained how he and Tiernan were personally training a division in the Terra Troops called the Cadet Warriors, which was going to consist entirely of those who were unskilled with magic. Squibs and anyone who wanted to learn how to fight with archery and swords as opposed to wands. Finn told him about how the Squibs were a delight to work with because they had magic in their blood that made their weapons listen to them in ways that others often didn't understand. He said that so far they had six Squibs in the division and eight other witches and wizards who were interested in learning how to fight that way.

"Your idea was brilliant, mo grá, everyone agrees. Madam Bones in particular likes it and she stops by when we're training sometimes. She asked me the other day if I could show her how to use archery. She wants to be more prepared for anything and I find it inspiring. She's a great leader," Finn told him.

Theo nodded. "I agree with that. She was a great choice to be elected. I think she's done nothing but good for the Ministry since she's come into power."

They were interrupted by Kiki who brought them plates of fresh fruit and vegetables along with thickly sliced ham sandwiches on rye bread with mustard, Swiss cheese, tomatoes, and crunchy lettuce. Theo thanked her and she beamed at him before leaving them alone.

Theo glanced at the clock. "It's already five. I have to be back at school by ten."

Finn smiled and leaned across the bed to kiss him. "Yes, and then next Saturday, you will be all mine once more."

Theo knew his boyfriend was right, but he couldn't help but feel like he missed him so much already. "I hate being separated like this."

Finn popped a raspberry into Theo's mouth. "Your education is important. I know it's hard to be away from each other, but we did it last year and we can do it for two more years."

"Two years!" Theo groaned. "That's basically eternity!"

Finn chuckled. "Hardly. It will go by fast. I like having you at Hogwarts to keep an eye on Ciara. I like knowing that you're there and learning things to protect yourself. I like having you there with your friends and most of all, I like it when you come back to me."

"Finn, I just… I sleep so much better with you."

Finn took Theo's free hand in his as he watched him eat a carrot. "Have your nightmares returned?"

Theo shrugged. "A little."

"Have you spoken to Ginny or to Blaise?"

"I don't want to bother them."

"My Theo, that is what your friends are for. Promise me you will go to them when the nightmares get too bad?"

Theo nodded. "I promise."

Finn reached up to gently stroke Theo's bottom lip. "You never talk to me about the dreams. I don't want to intrude if you don't want to talk about them, but I have an excellent ear."

"I already know Blaise told you. Bloke can't keep a secret to save his life."

Finn smiled. "He worries for you."

"I know," Theo said. "And it's sweet of him. But, those dreams about my past… it's not like I can change anything. My father wasn't exactly father of the year."

"No, he wasn't," Finn said slowly. "I wish he was still alive so that I could murder him for you. If I ever get the chance to thank this Lucius Malfoy for anything, it will be for killing that mac lofa soith."

"He… I mean, I don't know for sure, but I think that he killed my mum. I remember he was always yelling at her. She was beautiful, you know."

Finn pointed to the picture of her on Theo's nightstand. A beautiful young woman with Theo's dark brown hair. She had piercing blue eyes and a kind smile. "She was incredibly beautiful. I would have loved the chance to meet her. Her name was Aster?"

Theo nodded. "Yes. Aster Amelia Rosier Nott. It was an arranged marriage. She was only seventeen when she married my father and he was already fifty-two. She didn't want to marry him. Everyone knew the history of the Notts and well, nothing good ever came of getting involved with them. Everyone knew my grandfather was a pureblood supremacist who insisted on things being done his way and wouldn't take much else. No one really mourned him when he passed. But… he was kind to me. He always wanted a grandson, he told me. When he died, my father just… he went off the deep end."

"How so?"

"Well, when the Wizengamot refused him and the Sovereign Chalice basically deemed him unacceptable, he just went off the deep end. He became worse than before."

"When your mother was alive… do you remember her?"

"Some things," Theo admitted. "I was only three, well almost four when she died. She always smelt like flowers and she used to wear Chanel No.5 and I remember she used to tuck me in every night and cuddle me onto her lap and tell me the story of King Midas and his golden touch. And she used to…" He trailed off and blushed as he spoke.

He looked up at his boyfriend and took a drink of the red wine that Kiki had brought them with their dinner.

"She what?" Finn prompted.

Theo shrugged. "She used to always do this." He reached forward and kissed Finn's forehead, then his nose, then each cheek. "And she'd say, 'one kiss for goodnight, two kisses for good morning, three kisses for luck, and four kisses because I love you.' Then she'd hug me tightly and say, 'My darling, Theo, my sweet little Theo-bear,' and then she'd kiss my forehead again and tuck me in. Then before she'd leave, she'd tell me that she loved me more than a million chocolate biscuits and I used to say I loved her more than a million lemon cakes."

Finn smiled. "You do love lemon cakes."

Theo shot him an amused look under his eyelashes. "I don't remember much else about her."

"Those are pretty great memories," Finn told him. "I wish I could have met her."

"Me too," Theo said.

"What about your mother's family?" Finn asked.

"Dead," Theo told him. "They were killed in the first war. Father used to call them traitors so I always assumed they were killed by Death Eaters. Evan Rosier was killed by Aurors when he struggled during arrest and technically I'm related to Draco's grandmother, Druella, but she's my great-aunt on my mother's side through marriage so she doesn't really count. Lucius and Narcissa were always like family to me. Auntie Cissa is my godmother. My mother considered her a close friend, even though they were seven years apart. Father never liked the way that the Mum was close to her. He claimed that Mum didn't keep their private life private."

"You said that she died in an accident?"

Theo nodded. "Father was angry about something. I don't remember what, but he started yelling at Mum and fighting. I dream of it a lot and I don't know how much is memory and how much is… my nightmares. But in my dream, she managed to disarm him and he punched her in the face. She lost her wand and he kept punching her. He broke her nose and her jaw and I remember that I tried to stop him. I picked up Mum's wand and I shot sparks at him. It was enough to stop him, but he grabbed me by the throat and… I don't remember much. I flew through the air and landed hard. I woke up and Mum was cradling me in her arms and her face was bleeding and she was yelling at my father. He… he said something about me being a little shit and that if she was a real mother she would distill discipline and manners into me. She said that she was going to make a healing potion to help me as I had broken my arm. I spent the next day in bed with her coddling me and I got sick, I had a fever… I remember Mum saying that she would brew me a potion straight away and Father claiming that Nott men didn't need potions to get rid of a fever."

Theo had begun twisting his hands in his lap now and Finn reached out to hold them both tightly in his grasp.

"She laid out all of the ingredients and brewed the potion, but something went wrong and it exploded. It knocked her back and… Aurors came and claimed it was an accident."

"But you don't think that it was?"

Theo shook his head. "I think my father did something and then cleaned it up, but I'll never know, will I?"

Finn wrapped an arm around Theo, kissing him softly. "She sounds like an incredible woman. You have her kind heart."

Theo shrugged, surprised to find tears in his eyes. He blinked them back. "I don't want to talk about her anymore, or my father."

Finn kissed his forehead. "Okay. But promise me you'll go to Blaise or to Ginny should you dream?"

"I promise."

Finn kissed his cheek before he passed him one of the thick sandwiches. "Now eat, you need sustenance."

Theo smiled up at him. "I don't know what I did to deserve you."

Finn took a bite out of a slice of red pepper, tossing his towel onto the ground and leaning back against the pillows of the bed gloriously and comfortably naked. "Our souls were meant to meet, mo grá. Tá grá agam duit."

"Tá grá agam duit," Theo repeated as he ate his sandwich, his eyes on his boyfriend's beautiful naked form.

And for the first time all week, he felt lighter.

~ ASC ~

After spending the morning, discussing Quidditch and classes with their friends, Harry just wanted to spend the rest of his day with his girlfriend. He convinced her to go outside for a walk with him later on that afternoon. He held her hand in his as they walked along the grounds and around the Black Lake, enjoying the autumn sunshine and the heat of September that occasionally lofted a cool breeze.

"What's going through that mind of yours?" Ginny asked him. "I can see the wheels turning from here."

He gave her a lopsided grin. "You can, can you? I must be thinking pretty hard then."

Ginny grinned. "Must be. Anything I can help with?"

Harry shook his head. "No, not yet. Just something that Dumbledore asked me to think about. He asked me not to share it with anyone else until we discuss it again."

Ginny nodded. "Sounds ominous."

Harry shrugged. "Troubling is more like it, I suppose. Something about Voldemort's past. But, I don't want to think about Voldemort. I want to think about you."

Ginny smiled up at him. "That could be arranged."

He squeezed her hand in his. "I think that we're going to have to schedule time for each other this year - which is not fair. But if we both have Quidditch practice on Monday and Wednesday nights, those two are out."

"I have Astronomy late on Tuesdays."

"Plus Defence Club is going to be on Thursdays, but this year we'll be in the same one."

"Quidditch on Saturday mornings leaves that out " Ginny told him.

"Wednesdays I'm done at twenty past three and Fridays I finish at twenty past two. My only free period is on Thursdays after lunch until half past two."

"Mondays I finish by three and half past three on Wednesdays, but my study period is Monday mornings before lunch."

"Plus we'll actually need time to get our homework done," Harry added. "And I have these new lessons with Dumbledore which will potentially change every week."

"And I have the Herald now as well."

Harry frowned. "I feel like I miss you already."

Ginny smiled, tugging him over to a large oak tree near the lake. He sat at the base of the tree and Ginny sat between his open legs, her back resting against his chest.

"We'll make time, Harry. We both finish early on Wednesdays, I end with Potions and you with History of Magic. That gives us an hour and a half until dinner. Maybe we can also set aside Fridays and Saturdays. Saturday afternoons or Saturday evenings no matter what, is time just for us. Sundays have to be about homework and catch up. See, it won't be too awful and maybe on Fridays we can alternate, so that we can see our friends. I want to see mine at least."

"No, I do too," Harry told her with a laugh. "I just like you more sometimes."

She snorted and patted his leg. "I am pretty great. Besides, we'll still see each other at meal times."

"And maybe some snogging after practice?"

Ginny turned her head to smile back at him. "Exactly."

Harry sighed. "This year just seems crazy already. I already have a lot of homework. Hermione gave me the don't wait too long to do it speech. I mean, I have less classes and I think my workload is already higher."

"Did you talk to Zee?"

Harry nodded. "Yes. I mirror called her the second day of classes. She said that everything is good and that Padfoot has been sleeping in her bed now. I miss him, too. By the time I go home for Christmas, he's not going to be a little puppy anymore."

"He'll still be a puppy, just a big puppy," Ginny said, making Harry smile.

"Yeah, I suppose. I talked to Zee last night as well and she said that Charlie was in her departmental meeting yesterday. I guess he's doing something with the DRRB in terms of Wing Guard stuff. She also said that Hermione's house elf stuff came up again."

"That's great!" Ginny told him. "Hermione will be so happy. I know that she was a little worried that it was going to be forgotten."

"Yeah, I meant to tell her this morning, but I forgot. Zee also got a promotion. She's going to be Deputy Head of the Menagerie in the DRCMC."

"That's great!"

"It is good news," he agreed before he shifted her around so that she was facing him.

Ginny reached up to gently brush his hair off his forehead. "You okay?"

He nodded. "Yes. Being with you always makes me feel better."

"I can relate to that," she said.

She tugged his head down and placed a gentle kiss over his scar.

Harry wasn't sure what it was about it, but whenever Ginny kissed his scar, he felt perfect in her eyes. It was such an ugly part of him, a reminder of what he had lost, of the evil that Voldemort had left inside of him. Yet even knowing what it represented, knowing what it had done, Ginny still kissed it. Her lips on his scar felt incredible. It was warmth, it was love, it was acceptance, and most of all, it was healing in ways he couldn't explain. He just knew that when she did such a simple thing, he fell more in love with her than before.

Harry pulled her closer in his arms, closing his eyes as he held her. It amazed him that just holding Ginny could make him feel so much better. His worries almost melted away, nothing seemed as big or as scary when she was there. He didn't want to think about anything other than her. He didn't want to worry about Zee being alone, he didn't want to worry about Voldemort and his lessons with Dumbledore; he just wanted to lose himself in his girlfriend.

He lifted his head, tenderly kissing her cheek. Ginny's fingers were still in his hair and she turned her head to meet his lips, brushing them. They teased each other for a moment, not quite kissing before Harry's fingers tightened on her hips and his mouth clamped to hers to kiss her deeply.

The feel of her sweet mouth under his was exactly what he had been missing most of the week. He wanted to relish in the enjoyment of just kissing his girlfriend. They had no classes to hurry off to and nowhere important to be; they had the whole afternoon to themselves and he planned to take full advantage of it. He slid his hands up her back and into her hair, dancing through the soft tresses before his hand moved back down and cupped her behind. His second hand joined the first as he gripped her bum more firmly and he sighed against her lips as Ginny's fingers danced under his tee shirt and along his back.

He wanted to touch her again. He wanted to feel her soft skin under his hands. He wanted to feel her warmth. He broke the kiss, kissing her closed eyelids, her cheeks, the corners of her mouth.

"I want to touch you again," he murmured against her mouth. "I want to make you come for me."

Ginny's cheeks flushed, her lashes fluttered open as her brown eyes looked at him full of desire. "Harry..." She rested her hand on his cheek and he turned his head to kiss her palm.

His green eyes stayed on hers as his hand slid down to cup her, feeling the heat of her through the jeans she wore. "Are you wet? I want to make you wet."

Ginny made a strangled sound in her throat before she jumped to her feet and held her hand out to him. Harry let her pull him up, grinning widely as they headed back to the castle, stopping every few steps to share a kiss or a teasing squeeze. They made it to the third floor before he tugged her behind a tapestry and kissed her madly.

Ginny moaned as his mouth sucked her neck. Her hands slid up the back of his tee shirt and he lifted her, wrapping her legs around his waist and pinning her to the stone wall. Ginny gasped in surprise, her nails digging into his back as she pulled him closer. He knew that she could feel how hard he was pressed against her stomach. All week he'd been dreaming of her, wanking to thoughts of her, and here she was, finally in his arms where he wanted her. The feel of her soft hands running along his naked back made him crave her touch even more. He wanted those hands all over him. He wanted her all over him.

His hands slid under the blue v-neck tee shirt she wore, cupping her left breast, and she sighed.

"No, stop," she murmured against his mouth.

Harry reluctantly let her go and she slid back to her feet to collect her bearings before grabbing his hand and leading him onwards.

They stopped again to kiss on the stairs.

They stopped by another alcove near the fifth floor and when Harry gripped both hands around his girlfriend's bum, the portrait of a warlock shouted, "Get a good grip, m'boy! That's an arse poetry can be written about!"

Ginny merely shot two fingers at the portrait and tugged Harry further along. By the time they finally made it up to their private little tower room, Harry felt like he was going to combust. He wanted her hands on him almost as much as he wanted to touch her.

"I can't believe that no one else knows about this room," Ginny said when the door closed behind them.

Harry was thankful no one else seemed to know about this room because at the moment he definitely didn't want to be interrupted. He pulled her close and kissed her again. Ginny only sighed into him as he walked her back towards the sofa and she collapsed onto it. Harry stared at her for a moment. Her long red hair was tousled from his hands and her lips swollen.

"You're so bloody beautiful, Ginny. So beautiful."

Ginny smiled. "Compliments are definitely in your favour."

Harry leaned down to kiss her as Ginny tugged him down on top of her, her lips pressing against his. Kissing her was pure bliss. He yearned to touch her, to hold her. He wanted to bask in the warmth of her sun. He wanted to keep kissing her, to never let go. The warmth was what he needed; what he wanted more than anything. He could feel the curves of her body pressing against him, her plump breasts molding to his chest. His hardness sat just above her centre and she moaned, wrapping her legs around him to pull him closer.

Harry shoved one hand down onto the couch to prop himself up as his other hand kneaded a breast. Ginny sighed into him and he moved his hand a little lower. He tore his lips away from hers to meet her molten gaze as he undid the button on her jeans. He slowly unzipped her; Ginny bit her bottom lip.

Her breath hitched and Harry didn't take his eyes off of her as he slid his hand into the denim to stroke over the cotton.

"Fuck, Ginny, you're soaked…"

Ginny's eyes crossed when he stroked her a little harder. "Touch me, Harry, please..."

Harry's fingers slipped under her knickers, touching the hot warmth there, brushing her wet curls, and he groaned. Nothing in his whole life had ever felt so fantastic as this incredible woman beneath him. He shifted his finger along her folds, slipping it through her curls and then into her. She was so hot and pulsing, so wet and soft. He moaned as the tip of his finger slid into her, gliding along her flesh.

Ginny cried out beneath him, biting her bottom lip again. "Harry…"

Harry danced his finger along the edge of her, teasing in and out in a maddening fashion, exploring until he found her clit. He pressed and rubbed slowly as Ginny gasped.

"Here?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

Ginny's chocolate brown eyes were so full of desire that he almost came on the spot. "Yes! Keep touching me, please."

Harry added a second finger, circling and rubbing the tiny bud as Ginny writhed beneath him and then he removed his hand slowly and she sighed in disappointment. He brought his fingers to his lips and sucked them into his mouth. Ginny's eyes darkened as she watched him. He reached down and tugged her jeans off, tossing them behind him.

"Harry…" she whispered.

"I want to see you, Ginny. I want to watch what I'm doing to you," he said softly, his voice full of arousal as he bent his head to kiss her lips.

Ginny's mouth met his fiercely for a long kiss and then her breath hitched when his lips slid down her throat, leaving a trail of hot wet kisses to the tip of her v-neck tee shirt. His fingers fiddled with the hem of her shirt, sliding it up as he sucked her breasts through her shirt and bra. His hand slid around to her back, unclasping her bra rather successfully and allowing his tongue to dip under and stroke her nipple. She moaned as he suckled her a moment before he kissed under her breasts. He kept kissing her skin as he bunched her shirt up under her breasts. His mouth kept moving lower down her stomach and her breath was coming out in ragged gasps now.

"Harry… Harry, please… I need…"

Harry kissed her belly button, kissing the six tiny freckles that were scattered around her navel and then kissed below it. He peppered her waist above her knickers in tiny kisses, kissing her hips and where her knickers ended just at her thighs and then he shifted lower, falling to his knees before her.

Ginny's brown eyes were wide as she stared at him. Her crimson locks were spread around the sofa cushions, half hanging over the arm. Her shirt was bunched up under her breasts, the bottom of her breasts partially exposed under her open bra, and her pretty little blue and green striped knickers showed off her shapely legs. Harry took a moment to admire her. Eyes on the scattered freckles on her legs, the smooth thighs. He slid his hands up her calves, tickling the underside of her knees, and stroked two fingers up her soaked knickers, and she panted. He did it again, three times, then four, and then he hooked his fingers in the band and slowly slid them down her legs.

Harry dropped her knickers on the ground next to him and he took her in. The triangle of red and gold curls at her core was damp. He could feel Ginny's eyes on him as he stared at her and he reached forward, spreading her thighs a little wider before he brushed his thumbs over her folds. He watched in amazement as wet flesh opened before him.

"Fuck, you're so beautiful," he said, sliding his finger up a bit higher to explore her.

Harry's eyes widened when he found the tight little bud. He stroked it gently, watched it tremble and emerge, and felt her pulse around his finger. He let his finger glide into her, slowly moving in and out as he used his thumb to rub the area around her clit. She was panting now, so he slid his thumb over the clit, rubbing in a circular motion before he changed it and she began to make moaning noises.

Watching what his fingers were doing to her was even better than touching her blindly. He snuck a glance up at her. She had one hand in her hair, her head tossed back and her other hand was kneading her exposed breast. He rubbed her clit a bit harder and she made a half moan, half cry that made him so hard, he almost lost it. He looked down at what his fingers were doing again and then, before he could change his mind, he lowered his head and kissed her clit.

Ginny jumped under his mouth.

Harry rubbed her thigh softly with his free hand and kissed her again. The heat of her made his glasses fog, so he tugged them off, and slid his tongue over her folds. The taste of her along his tongue as she cried out above him was better than he had imagined. He knew at that moment that his fathers had been right.

Nothing had ever tasted so good.

He used his tongue again, licking her gently, softly, sliding his tongue along the edge of her the way that he had first teased with his fingers. He let his fingers keep working her in a slow come-hither motion as he moved his mouth up a bit higher and covered that trembling bud with his lips. His own hips jerked automatically at the noises she made, pressing against the edge of the sofa, desperate for some form of friction. He rubbed himself against the base of the couch as he wrapped his mouth around her clit, sucking it softly, twirling his tongue around it over and over and it seemed to be the final straw.

Ginny bucked against him, her small hands gripping his hair tightly, and she cried out a mantra of sounds that mixed his name in between as his tongue stayed wrapped around her bud. She pulsed and trembled around him. He moaned, and the moment she let go, he lost it. He groaned against her, his cock grinding against the denim and the sofa. He reached down to knead himself through his trousers as he climaxed, letting his tongue continue to lap as his fingers kept crooking in a forward motion, until finally she subsided with a soft moan.

Harry licked her slowly, kissing her wet curls as he slid his fingers out. He kept his eyes on hers as he put his fingers in his mouth and slowly cleaned them off one by one. Then he bent his head to kiss her inner thigh tenderly before he put his glasses back on and kissed his way up her stomach. He tugged her forward, kissing her cheek, his eyes on those perfect lips.

Ginny's chocolate brown eyes were wide and dark in desire and her fingers clutched his hair, pulling him to her mouth to kiss him deeply, her tongue mimicking what he had just done to her. When she finally let him go, she brushed her lips over his jaw.

"That was… I… thank you," she whispered.

Harry's grin was quick. "No, thank you." At her raised brow, he blushed. "I er, I liked that so much I kind of…" He made a gesture to his trousers and her eyes widened.

"You came? By just… touching me?"

He nodded. "You're so bloody sexy and you taste so fucking good. I couldn't control myself."

Ginny's fingers tightened on his hair. "You… I mean, you liked it? Doing that, I mean… to me?"

Harry nodded again, nipping at her lips. "I liked it a lot. No, I really, really liked it." He let his hand slip down to cup between her legs. "In fact, I liked it so much that I want to do it again — right now."

"Right — oh, Merlin," she moaned when his finger slipped into her.

"I heard that a woman doesn't have to wait like a man does," he whispered. "That she can just keeping going and going and going." His finger began to stroke her again and Ginny's head fell back.

"Harry…"

Harry took his glasses off again and kissed her softly and then he pushed her back down onto the sofa and bent his head between her legs. She tasted even better than the first time. Now he could taste her, that distinctly Ginny taste. She smelt like flowers and earth; he relished in it. He used his tongue more daringly, stroking and licking, saying her name as he did, and the vibrations made her groan.

By the time he finally wrapped his tongue back around her bud, she was gasping and panting his name. He sucked and licked, nipped and tugged, stroked and teased as her fingers gripped his hair so tightly it almost hurt. It seemed to take no time at all for his own cock to be hard again and he wanted to touch himself, but he made no attempt to do so. He instead only increased his motions, twirling his tongue around her again and again, criss-crossing, circling as he tried to see what she liked best, and she cried out, panting his name.

He moaned as she trembled and pulsed under his mouth and when he finally felt her walls contract, he kissed her wet curls tenderly and slipped his glasses back on.

Ginny had the softest and most pleased smile on her face he had ever seen. She looked downright smug. Her eyes fluttered open slowly and she gave him a slow, satisfied smile that made his cock twitch.

"I love you," he said, kissing her stomach.

"I love you, Harry," she replied, brushing her fingers down his cheek. "And that was… the most amazing thing I have ever… it was much better than I imagined."

Harry knew he held a pretty smug look on his own face as well. "Yeah? You imagined me doing that."

"Mmhm," she said. "A few naughty dreams, but I never… I never thought you might actually want to."

Harry kissed her stomach, resting his cheek against the soft skin of her belly. "I've been wanting to do that since my birthday when I first tasted you."

Ginny placed a hand over her racing heart. "That was… worth the wait."

He grinned and slid a hand up to cup her breast through the shirt she still wore. "Can I do it again?"

"Harry!" she exclaimed, her eyes wide.

Harry moved back up onto the sofa, leaning over her, his hard cock pressing over her core through the denim as he brought his lips to hers for a long searing kiss. Ginny wrapped her legs around his waist and rocked into him, he groaned against her mouth.

"If you keep that up, I'm going to make an even bigger mess in my trousers."

Ginny cupped his cheek. "Did you really come before…?"

He nodded and kissed her softly. "I did."

The sound of the charm echoing signalling that dinner was about to be served had both of them jolting.

Ginny pushed him up, tugging her shirt down and Harry leaned back against the sofa, tilting his head to look at her arse. He reached out and took a handful, squeezing firmly and she yelped in surprise and then laughed when he tugged her back into his lap to kiss her.

"Harry, we have to get downstairs. We promised Ron and Hermione that we'd meet them for dinner and then get started on our homework."

Harry kissed her again, his hand still cupping her bum and his other hand coming up to play with her tit. "I know. I've just never seen your arse all naked."

Ginny shimmied out of his grip and stood up. "Well, if you're lucky, you'll see it again. Now stand up!"

He watched her re-adjust her bra and tug her shirt down again before she slipped her knickers back on, then her jeans, and his cock throbbed desperately against his own jeans. Ginny ruffled her hands through her hair in an attempt to make it look less messy before she simply shoved it up into a messy bun and then took his hand in hers.

"You good to go down to dinner? I'm sorry I didn't…"

Harry nodded and performed a quick cleansing charm on himself. "I'm perfect," he told her. "Touching you, tasting you… it was perfect."

Ginny stood on her toes and kissed his cheek. "You're the most amazing man, Harry Potter."

Harry put his arm around her waist, kissing her forehead. "I don't think you quite understand how much I just enjoyed myself, Miss Weasley, and how much I can't wait to do it again."

Ginny blushed. "We have to get down to dinner or we might never leave this room."

Harry agreed and did another quick cleansing charm on himself, just to be safe as he tried to focus on something other than the fact that he had just had his tongue inside of Ginny. Snape, he thought bitterly, think of Snape, Voldemort, Snape, Voldemort… but then he licked his lips and the taste of her flooded his senses and he groaned.

It was going to be a really long night, he thought. His eyes fell on her flushed cheeks, and her wide eyes and he couldn't help but smile.

He'd just had his tongue inside of Ginny and it had been the best moment of his life.

~ ASC ~

Blaise leaned back against the headboard of his four poster and let out a long slow breath that he felt like he'd been holding all week. He was worried about Draco and he knew that Theo felt the same. Getting the letter from his mother that morning only made him worry more.

She was getting married again (not that it surprised him), this time to a wealthy wine maker from Tuscany. He already forgot the bloke's name and figured it was for the best as he'd probably wind up dead anyway — lucky husband number six. He rubbed a hand over his head and closed his eyes. He was supposed to meet her in Hogsmeade on the first trip of the year at the end of the month and he'd promised he'd be there. His mother was a lot of things: Sneaky, conniving, manipulative, dangerous, and a bit of a tart, but she was still his mother. She loved him and despite her many, many flaws, he loved her as well. She had always taken care of him; always made sure that he had the best of everything. She'd never let him down and he knew what she was asking him to do by meeting her.

He had almost told Theo a handful of times, but telling him wasn't the choice he was looking to make. He had to do this on his own and he had to do it now before he backed out. His mother was a lot of things, but no matter what she wanted him to do, it was always his decision in the end. It was one of the only things he respected about her.

It was more than just meeting her. He knew that she would want to talk about her upcoming wedding and that was fine, but it meant that she was trusting him with more. Now it was his time to make a decision and it was his time to maybe use some of those skills that his mother had passed him.

After all, it wasn't only Bellarosa Zabini who could be a sneaky, conniving, manipulative, and dangerous little tart. It was time for him to prove himself and he knew exactly how he was going to do so.

End Author's Notes:

(Irish) mo grá = my heart

(Irish) mac lofa soith = rotten son of a bitch

(Irish) Tá grá agam duit = I love you

PS — I hope that was steamy enough for you :D

Thanks for reading and as always, please review.