Ginny opened her eyes, the bright lights of the women's loo at the Louvre a startling contrast to the dimness of the catacombs she'd just left. Heart racing, she took several deep breaths as she tried to organize her scattered thoughts, focusing on one in particular. So that vampire was really this gentleman here! I wonder what happened?

Pushing the bird mask up off of her face, she sighed in relief before turning the painting around to face it, the man looking back at her with a mournful expression. "Well, that was certainly unexpected, wasn't it? Mr Janszoon, I presume?"

He nodded once, seeming like he was coming out of the shock of seeing himself out in the real world. "Yes," he said. "I … think we can both agree that was very strange, yes?" His voice was low and mellow and his accent wasn't as hard to understand as she thought it would be.

"Very strange indeed!" she agreed, reliving the shock of seeing the vampire with the painting's face. How in the world did that happen? I thought wizard portraits didn't animate until the subject died. Maybe he did die? During the transformation? Or something? "Maybe Harry can—oh! Harry!"

She froze, the thought of the vampire attacking Harry surging to the front of her mind. Just as she was about to Apparate back to the catacomb, Harry appeared in the loo, covered entirely in what seemed to be some sort of dark gray ash.

Nearly prostrate with relief, Ginny propped the portrait up against a toilet cubicle, before sending ash flying off of him with a blast of air from her wand. Once Harry was clear of grayish substance, Ginny crushed her lips to his, kissing him the way she'd been wanting to all night. The scent of elderberries filled the loo. "Harry! What happened with the vampire? What've you got all over you?" she said when they finally broke apart.

Harry glanced at the portrait and then back at her, raising his eyebrow. "We'll chat about that later, all right? Right now, we have some work to do."

"Are we back at the Louvre?" the portrait asked, shaking off his melancholy. Ginny thought he looked quite handsome now that he wasn't so sad. I can see what Lisa sees in him!

"Yes. You won't be hanging up on some stranger's wall, after all," Ginny said, taking Harry's hand as he carefully levitated the portrait. They headed out of the women's loo and were halfway down the hall before she thought of the Disillusionment Charm. "Shouldn't we be disguised or something?"

Harry glanced up at the unobtrusive black ball in the ceiling and shrugged. "Nah. Let Daniel deal with it."

Ginny raised an eyebrow but chose not to say anything, certain that the French Auror had crossed her husband in some fashion. I'm sure I'll hear about it sooner rather than later. Let's just get this done; I'm ready to go home. At the thought of home, a sensation of giddiness swept through her and she squeezed Harry's hand, heart leaping when he squeezed back.

Portrait floating majestically in front of them, they made their way through the maze of galleries on their way to the Mona Lisa. Ginny found her steps speeding up until she and Harry were nearly jogging through the galleries, their footsteps echoing off of the priceless artworks surrounding them. Rounding a corner, they stopped, catching their breaths at the sight of the surprisingly small painting at the far end of the gallery.

"She's there! Oh, my love I never thought to see you again!" Egbert said, the sound of tears in his voice. Ginny felt her own throat tightening up in response.

As they approached, Ginny saw Lisa's eyes widen and that famous smile steal across her face. A shyness stole over Ginny while the two paintings stared avidly at each other for several moments before Lisa moved over to the painting with the fat horse so they could hear her.

"You have brought him back to me," she said, focusing that smile on Ginny, making it seem as if all was right in the world. "I can only offer my thanks."

"That's more than enough," Ginny said, glancing at Harry as if to dare him to say any different.

In his own frame, Egbert was murmuring endearments in what she supposed was Dutch before finally devolving into whispering Lisa's name over and over. "What do we do next?" she whispered, leaning in close to Harry.

"Put me back where I belong," Egbert said, making it sound like a command. "Put me back in my place so that my Lisa may come to me."

"As you wish," Harry murmured, taking Ginny's hand again as they left Lisa's gallery, Lisa following them through the myriad paintings until they arrived at the forgery. After spending all night watching the real, animated portrait, the forgery looked strange and stiff to Ginny's eyes.

She took out her wand and was about to levitate it off the wall when Harry put his hand out. "Hang on. Probably alarmed. We've been lucky tonight." Impatient, she waited while Harry performed some rather complicated wand movements before finally nodding at her.

Shaking with anticipation, Ginny took several calming breaths before using her wand to float the forgery off of the wall, setting it gently on the floor some distance away. A moment later, the proper wizarding portrait of Egbert Cornelus Janszoon hung in its place.

As soon as the portrait was hung, Ginny heard a cry and Lisa rushed into the ornate golden frame, throwing her arms around Egbert's neck, kissing him with wild abandon. Heat flooded her cheeks as she watched the reunited lovers and she conscientiously looked away, catching Harry's eyes. They shared an amused look and he took her hand again, drawing her to his side. Snuggling in his warmth, she stared around at the other paintings on display, trying to give the pair a little privacy.

The sound of a clearing throat drew her eyes back to the painting and she saw Egbert standing with his arm around Lisa's shoulders. He stood at his full height, Lisa looking positively tiny next to him, and inclined his head in a nod at her and Harry.

"You have my deepest and sincerest thanks for what you've done tonight," Egbert said. He paused for a moment, his expression darkening. "I know that your endeavor was not completely without risk. I … do not fully understand all of the circumstances, but I trust that the situation will be handled?"

"Erm, yeah, you don't have anything to worry about in that regard," Harry said with a wince and Ginny remembered the dark gray ash. I guess there's one less vampire in the world.

Lisa cleared her throat and stepped forward, hands clasped in front of her. "When Egbert was taken from here, I was certain that I would never see him ever again. You …" she paused for a moment, clearly overtaken with emotion. "You have saved me from an eternity of loneliness."

Ginny thought about that for a moment and shuddered. Taken away from everything you know and completely helpless to do anything about it. Not even able to die, but forced to simply exist. "Oh, it was our pleasure," she said, carefully wiping at her stinging eyes as Lisa moved back to stand with Egbert.

"Well, erm, I suppose we ought to be going?" Harry said, giving Ginny a sidelong look. "We've, uh, got to pack, yeah?"

A fierce stab of longing went through Ginny as she remembered that they were going back to England tomorrow before heading home to San Francisco. Oh, my boys! I'll see you tomorrow! she thought with a shiver of anticipation.

Her eyes fell on the forgery leaning against the wall. "What are we doing about that?"

Harry looked at it, lips pursed. "I think it would look nice in your mum and dad's lounge, don't you?"

"Why Mr Potter, what an excellent suggestion!" Ginny giggled, picturing the look on her mum and dad's faces when they beheld the static, severe visage of Egbert Cornelus Janszoon. "I expect he'll be spending a lot of time in the attic with the ghoul."

Lisa and Egbert watched as Harry picked up the forgery. Egbert looked like he was on the verge of saying something, but subsided at a touch from Lisa on his arm. Just like an old married couple. I wonder how long they've been together? "It was wonderful meeting you both," Ginny said. "Take care and maybe we'll see each other again someday."

Lisa favored her with that enigmatic smile once more. "Perhaps."

Hand in hand, Ginny walked with Harry out of the gallery. She glanced back, her view of the reunited lovers obscured by an enormous black hat.

Harry's lips traced a line down Ginny's neck, her skin as smooth as silk. He darted his tongue out, dipping into the hollow of her throat. "You know, love, I adore the smell of perfume on you, but I'm not overly fond of the taste," he said between kisses on her collarbone.

Ginny chuckled and swept the pad of her thumb along his brow. "Should I stop wearing it?"

"Hmm …" Harry murmured taking a deep breath. The fragrance she wore combined with her own natural scent into something that he couldn't imagine living without. Following her around all night at the illicit art auction and smelling her had been sheer torture and he bit down on the swell of her breast, meeting her eyes with his.

"Don't you come from a long line of potions geniuses?" Ginny asked, pulling him towards her for a kiss. "I'm sure you can come up with something that both smells and tastes good." Her kiss was electrifying, generating a tremble behind his belly button. "Maybe something along the lines of treacle tart?"

Harry went up on his elbows and raised an eyebrow at his wife. Her carefully-styled hair was a mess on the pillow and he wrapped a shining red lock around his finger. "Love, if I could find a way to make you taste like treacle tart …" he murmured, trailing off into a soft growl as his lips found her neck once more. He swept his tongue over her nipple, wrapping his lips around it and sucking gently as it hardened.

"Are you saying you'd never let me out of the house ever again?" Ginny asked, sounding just a bit out of breath.

"Never." Pushing her breasts together, Harry admired the sight of his hands pressing into her soft flesh. He ran his thumbs against the undersides of them, well aware of the fact that she was ticklish there. Lowering his mouth back down, he traced the very tip of his tongue along the crease of her full breast. "No perfume there," he remarked, walking his fingers down her belly.

"What about you?" Ginny asked, running her fingernails against his scalp through his thick hair.

"What about me what?" Harry closed his eyes, enjoying the shivery sensation generated by her touch.

"What about your cologne? I'm pretty good at potions. Maybe I could have a go at something."

Harry's fingers traced the waistband of her knickers, barely skimming along her skin. "What would you make it taste like?"

Ginny raised her arms over her head, bringing his attention back to her breasts. "Hmm, what would I like to lick off of you?" she mused, looking up at the ceiling.

"Not chocolate. That just made a mess." Harry scooted around, lying on his side and molding his body to hers.

"It did, didn't it? This doesn't have to be actual chocolate, though, it just has to taste like it. And smell like that one I got you for Christmas."

"Yeah? Which one?" Harry buried his nose in her hair and breathed deeply. The mingled scents of her shampoo, skin and perfume made his heart beat faster and he had a flash of the fear he'd felt at the sight of the vampire springing up into the air to attack her.

"The one by that Ford fellow. Tom, I think?" Ginny turned onto her side to face him, running her fingernail along the antler on his stag tattoo. She grinned and leaned in closer, taking a deep breath. "Someone's temperature just went up."

"How can you tell?" Harry asked, skin prickling as he broke out in a light sweat all over his body.

"I just got a burst of your cologne. Body heat makes it stronger." She looked up at him. "Excites the molecules."

Harry groaned when she moved her hand around to his bottom and gave him a good squeeze through the thin fabric of his boxers. "Bloody hell, but you manage to make science sound sexy."

"You think so? You should come to one of my presentations." Ginny leaned in close, putting her lips next to his ear. "Sometimes, we even have visual aids."

"Vijay would have an aneurysm if he found us shagging in your office."

"Wouldn't be the first time we'd been … inappropriate, now would it?" Ginny grinned at him and seemed about to say something before she frowned and licked her thumb, scrubbing at a spot on his temple. "What was that for?" Harry asked, wiping the spot with his own hand.

"You had a bit of vampire on you."

"Sorry." Harry turned over onto his back, bringing Ginny to lie on top of him, thoroughly enjoying the feeling of her skin against his own. "Want to shower with me?" he asked, lacing her fingers through his as he spread his arms, bringing her down for a kiss.

"I wonder what happened?" Ginny said, using the leverage of his hands to push away from him.

"Hmm? With what?" Now that she'd raised her upper body, her lower body was pressing delightfully into his and he spread his legs a little to help her settle closer.

"The vampire and the portrait. Obviously, Egbert was a wizard, right? But his portrait animated and Egbert was still … around. I thought that a wizard portrait couldn't animate until the subject was dead. Isn't it a bit of soul that goes in?" She pushed against his hands harder and sat up, straddling his hips. He stared as she gathered up her hair and tied it into a loose knot, wishing she'd left it loose.

"Are we really talking about this right now?" He traced the tip of a finger from the waistband of her knickers up to the middle of her chest.

"Yes, we are." Ginny gave her bottom a wiggle, rubbing against his hard cock. "I'm curious and I'm asking for your professional opinion," she said, punctuating her last two words by tapping him in the middle of his chest.

"My professional opinion," Harry sighed, putting his hands behind his head. "Well, you know how a vampire is created, don't you?"

"A bit. We covered them in training, but that was ages ago." Ginny leaned forward, resting her hands on his shoulders and slid her hips slowly back and forth. "There's a sort of master, isn't there?"

Harry closed his eyes, shutting out the sight of his gorgeous wife in the dim light of the room, breasts on full display as she teased him mercilessly. "Erm, well, any vampire can make children, but age—dammit, love, I'm trying to explain vampires to you!" He opened his eyes to glare at her as she looked back down at him with a catlike smile.

"Sorry, am I distracting you?" she asked, dragging her nails down his bare chest.

"You're the one who wanted answers."

"I thought you were doing fine. Carry on. You were saying something about age?" She smiled sweetly at him and cupped her breasts in her hands.

Resolutely, Harry closed his eyes again, determined to win this little contest. "Yes, the age of the vampire creating the child can matter. Younger vampires tend to make unstable children that are prone to killing when they're not hungry. Ron and I—" he paused, sucking in a breath as Ginny did something with her hips that sent a burst of heat into his belly. "Ron and I had to come to Paris and put one down."

"Why you two? Why not Daniel or someone here?" Ginny asked, sounding a little breathless.

"Vamp was a Brit. Our problem, yeah? One of Egbert's." Ginny stopped moving and Harry opened his eyes again, surprised at her frown.

"But he was turned in seventeen-something, wasn't he?"

"I guess so. That's young for a vampire still."

She shook her head, visibly setting that information aside for the moment. "But what about the portrait?" Now she seemed distracted by vampires and sat still.

"Well, I mean, you basically die. You have to choose it and accept it of your own free will, but your soul is no longer part of you. So, I suppose Egbert chose to become a vampire, died his first death and the bit of soul animated the portrait."

Still on top of him, Ginny stared over his head at the wall behind him, clearly not seeing it. "Hey," he whispered, "still with me?" Resting his hands on her hips, he thrust his own, bringing her attention back to him.

"Sorry," she said, shaking her head as if to shake out any thoughts of vampires. "I just don't understand what would make someone want to do that. To become one."

Harry sat up, wrapping his arms around her and shifting so she was underneath him. "Who knows, love?" he murmured, kissing her where her jaw met her neck. "Money, power … with enough time you can get a lot of both. Not everyone is Nicolas Flamel." He moved his mouth to her earlobe, nibbling with his lips around her earring, enjoying the sensation of her hands on his back.

"What was it like?" she sighed, making him pause.

"What was what like?"

"The Stone."

Brought up short by her question, Harry looked down at her, trying to figure out what she was talking about. "What stone?"

"The Philosopher's Stone," she said, looking back up at him with genuine curiosity. "I don't think I've ever heard you mention it."

Harry shrugged. "It was just a stone. Nothing special that I recall." He ran his thumb over her freckle-dusted cheek. "Are you all right? Do you still want to … ?"

Ginny smiled back up at him and put a hand against his cheek. "I guess tonight's got me a bit … introspective?" She raised herself up, meeting his lips with hers for a soft kiss before settling back down. Smiling at him, she looked like she was arranging her thoughts before she spoke. "Si j'étais un chat, je passerais mes neuf vies avec toi," she whispered, a stain of pink spilling over her cheeks.

Harry squinted down at her, processing what she'd said. "If I were a cat—"

"I'd spend my nine lives at your side!" Ginny finished for him. "See, you're not the only one who can say things in French."

"Oh, yeah?" Grinning, Harry searched his memory. "Est-ce que je peux avoir ta photo pour montrer au père Noël ce que je veux pour Noël?" he murmured, punctuating his words with kisses on her neck, collarbone and chest, making Ginny laugh.

"Wait, something about a picture and Christmas?"

"Can I have your picture to show Father Christmas what I want for Christmas?" Harry slid his hand down her neck to rest on her breast, squeezing gently.

Ginny raised an eyebrow and slid her hand down his side, tickling the thin skin over his ribs before creeping underneath the waistband of his boxers. "Hold on, I have … okay." She looked back up at him, giving him what he knew she thought was her sexy look. "As-tu une carte? Je viens … no, I can't remember the rest! Supposed to be something about a map and eyes."

Harry used his knee to part her legs, settling down between them and resting his head on her belly. "Where did you learn these?" he asked, enjoying the sensation of her fingers threading through his hair.

"When I was out shopping earlier. The shop girls were very obliging."

"I can imagine."

"One of them asked to see a picture of you."

"Yeah?" Harry lifted his head and looked up at her. "Did you show her one?" he asked, hooking his fingers into the waistband of her knickers.

"Yes." Ginny raised her hips as he slid the barely-there knickers off her hips and down her legs, her scent sparking fireworks in the primitive part of his brain.

He lowered his face between her legs, taking a deep breath. "Which one did you show her?" he asked, his breath stirring her damp curls.

"My favorite one." Ginny's voice came out in a breathy whisper, the sound of it giving Harry a shiver in his belly.

He darted his tongue out to taste her, the tangy salty sweetness of her achingly familiar but still thrilling after all of these years. "Which one is that?" he murmured, using his warm breath on every bit of her.

Ginny didn't answer for some time and Harry thought she'd given up trying when she finally spoke. "That one that you sent me. Trackies. No shirt," she said, her last words a low moan.

Harry chuckled, remembering when he'd taken the picture. She'd been in Boston at a conference and he'd sent it to show her what she'd been missing and he had no idea it was her favorite. It gave him a little thrill to know it.

She shifted underneath him, making that little impatient hum that never failed to turn him on and he let out a little groan in response. His stomach clenched with desire as he used his hands to spread her open to him, focusing on driving her insane with pleasure. The memory of her in that dress and that mask, always beyond his reach spurred him on and he vowed to remind her just who she belonged to.

Ginny had turned to liquid fire beneath his mouth and hands, hips moving in time with her gasps and sighs. Harry looked up, tracing the contours of her body with his eyes, including the wobbly bit of stomach that she hated but he secretly adored. Her arms were thrown over the pillows and her head turned to the side, her bottom lip captured in her teeth as she anticipated the release he was working on giving her.

Gripping her hips to hold her still, he returned to his task, using all of the knowledge he'd gained about her over the years to get her to reach that peak and slide down the other side. She let out a series of soft "Ohs," the sounds generating prickles all over Harry's scalp and down his back as she climaxed against him.

"Beautiful," he murmured, another rush of heat sweeping over his skin as he knelt in front of her, watching avidly as she came back to herself.

"What?" Ginny pushed up from the bed, settling down in front of him. She placed a gentle kiss on his hip, right between the stag's antlers.

"I said you're beautiful," Harry whispered, bending down to kiss her. She pushed him away, shaking her head as she pulled down his boxers, freeing his erect cock. "What? You don't agree?"

She didn't answer, choosing to take him in her hands and stroke him up and down instead. She looked up at him, raising one eyebrow, before parting her lips and taking him into her warm mouth.

Still on his knees, Harry closed his eyes and let out a long, slow breath. Opening his eyes again, he saw Ginny looking straight at him as she slid up and down his rock-hard shaft. The sight of her lips wrapped around him gave him a swooping sensation in his stomach and he reached down, combing his fingers through her shining hair. "Beautiful," he whispered again.

All too soon, he was robbed of words as she continued to work her own sort of magic on him. His heart beat wildly in his chest as he swayed on his knees before giving up and sinking down onto the bed in a rustle of covers. Pleasurably light-headed, he was only vaguely aware of Ginny sliding her body against his before she whispered in his ear. "Beautiful."

"Hmph," Harry murmured, capturing her lips in a long kiss as he settled his body on top of hers, stomach clenching as it always did when she spread her legs for him.

"Harry," she whispered, brown eyes serious. "Have you done it yet?"

"Mmm? Done what?" he asked, pushing up from her.

"The spell."

"Which—oh. Erm, no?"

Ginny looked thoughtful for a moment, nibbling on her bottom lip before looking back at him. "Could you … not … do it?"

An icy chill followed by a flash of heat left Harry with a shivering sensation and he fought for words, finally wheezing out, "Okay."

"All right?" Ginny asked, frowning at him in concern.

Gaining control over himself, Harry nodded more vigorously than he meant to. "Yeah! Just, erm, surprised. You're sure?"

Ginny put her hands on his shoulders and pulled him down to her. "Yes, I'm sure," she said, her breath tickling his ear. "I thought maybe we'd at least give it a try."

"What if …" Harry said, lowering himself back to the bed and taking her in his arms.

"We didn't need any help with Allie." Ginny looked at him, tucking a stray lock of hair behind her hear. "Would you rather we make a trip down to Brittany and see if we can convince a Selkie maid to let us borrow her skin?"

Harry's memory flashed back to languid nights making love to Ginny on top of Marella's indescribably sleek and soft Selkie skin when they were desperately trying to have their first child and he grinned down at her. "Am I not enough for you anymore?" he asked, trailing a hand up her ribs to her breast, cupping it and squeezing gently.

"Your fur isn't as soft," she said, rubbing her palm against the hair on his belly before gliding around to his bum and pulling him towards her.

"How do you stand me?" Harry rolled over, re-positioning his body between Ginny's silky-smooth legs, absurdly conscious of the dark hair covering his lower half.

"You have certain charms," she said, reaching down between them for his cock, wrapping her hand around him and sliding the head up and down her slit, spreading her warm wetness all over him before finally guiding him into her.

Harry paused, savoring the sweetness of that initial moment of connection when he felt like he could just dissolve into her, burying his face in the crook of her neck as he caught his breath. Ginny's hands sweeping over his shoulders and back and her quiet voice in his ear prompted him to start moving with slow, purposeful strokes.

Slow and purposeful, however, was not the sort of mood his wife was in and she let out a low hum, shifting her hands down to his bum, digging in her fingernails. "Harder," she hissed, eyes fixed on his and he was only too happy to comply, pulling out and pushing back into her as hard as he dared, grinning when she breathed out a short, sharp, "Yes."

Harry allowed himself to sink into a world of pure sensation, shutting out all thoughts of vampires, stolen art and reunited lovers. Only Ginny's lithe body underneath him seemed like it fully existed, moving in perfect sync with his as they strove to drive each other out of their minds. He caught a burst of her perfume as he sucked on her neck, making her squeak and rake her nails across his back in retaliation.

"Are you marking me, love?" Harry murmured, lips tracing a path along her skin.

"I should have marked you tonight," Ginny said, eyes half-closed in bliss. "All of those women, throwing themselves at you." She turned her head, biting down on his earlobe. "Shameful."

"What about you? I thought your ferret friend was going to take you home."

Ginny wrapped her legs around his waist, locking them at the ankles to hold him still within her. "What if I had gone home with him?" she asked, tracing the tip of a finger along his jaw.

Harry captured her finger in his teeth and bit down before letting it go. "One of you would have been in for a bad time."

Shifting underneath him, Ginny raised her arms high above her head in a luxurious stretch. "I'm just having a terrible time right now."

"Yeah?" Harry started moving again, hoping to soothe the deep ache from being still.

"The worst," she sighed, closing her eyes as he slid his arms under her back to lift her up. In moments, she was straddling him and she laughed as he grinned up at her. "Much better."

Looking up at her, Harry had to force himself to swallow the hot ache that rose in his throat. Since having the boys, she hadn't liked to be on top of him as often, citing the cruelness of gravity and he reveled in the sight of her rolling her hips against his for maximum pleasure. She leaned forward and he caught her hands with his, letting out a groan as she started sliding up and down his cock, creating the friction they both longed for.

Using his grip as leverage, Ginny began coming down with more force, making Harry grunt in satisfaction. He wanted to put his hands on her hips, on her breasts and anywhere else he could reach, but he held tight to her hands, breath coming harder as she continued her assault. Mesmerized, Harry stared as she threw her head back, her lips curved in a perfect O as she hurtled past the point of no return.

Seized by an overwhelming urgency for his own release, Harry gave in to his desire for control and in moments he had Ginny turned over on her stomach, long red hair spilling down her bare back. Bending over her, he swept her hair aside, trailing his lips along the dip of her spine before sliding back into her heat. Electricity seemed to arc through him as he drove into her and she turned her head to kiss him, swallowing his groans as he finally crested his own wave of ecstasy.

An overwhelming lassitude swept through Harry and he collapsed down onto the bed, pulling Ginny close to him. They shared soft touches and kisses, giggling as their sweaty skin stuck together. "All right?" Ginny whispered, nuzzling his neck.

"Very," he answered, kissing the top of her head as his heart slowed down to its normal rhythm. "You?"

"Mm." Harry felt her shrug and he lifted his head, looking down at her, meeting her mischievous eyes as her hand drifted down his chest and stomach.

His skin tingled where she touched him and he let out a breathless chuckle. "Minx. I might need a little while, yeah?"

Ginny pouted, cupping her own breast and running her thumb over the pink nipple. "I don't," she said, the pout morphing into that smile that never failed to fill him with longing.

"Oh, Mum! Let me show you what we brought you from Paris!" Harry watched as Ginny waved her wand, restoring the forgery of Egbert Cornelis Janszoon to full size.

"Oh … my," Molly said, looking first at the painting and then at Arthur. Harry tried to recall the last time he'd seen her at a loss for words and he came up empty.

"Well, who is this fellow, then?" Arthur came to stand next to Molly, frank admiration on his face. "He looks a bit …"

"Dutch, Dad. His name is Egbert Cornelus Janszoon and I knew you had to have it as soon as I saw it."

"That's very nice of you, dear, but I'm afraid—" Molly began, only to be cut off by her daughter.

"There's the perfect place for him right there, right above the wireless." Businesslike, Ginny picked up the painting and strode over to the wireless, using her wand to affix the forgery to the wall, taking pains to make sure it was straight.

"Smashing, darling!" Arthur stood with his hands in his pockets, rocking back and forth on his heels as he looked at the painting.

James burst into the lounge, Allie hot on his heels. Both of the boys stopped still at the sight of the new addition to the Burrow's lounge and stared. James pointed at it, a frown on his normally cheerful face. "Bad man," he said, startling Harry.

He bent to scoop him up, not sure what was coming next. "Hey, let's go out into the garden and look at the gnomes, okay?" he said, taking Allie's hand. He looked at Ginny, communicating with her in that wordless way parents seemed to have. Bad man? Does he mean the vampire he became? How does he know?

Outside, he set James down and watched as his boys swarmed up the play structure he and Ron had built that one Christmas. James didn't seem to still be bothered by the painting and Harry breathed a sigh of relief. Allie had managed to finally make it up to the second platform when Ginny came out, putting her arm around his waist.

"They'll take it down as soon as we leave," she said, resting her head on his shoulder.

"You think so? Your dad seemed to be pretty taken with it."

Ginny snorted. "He's got a good poker face." They watched the boys play, the both of them shouting in delight at the discovery of a nest of gnomes near the slide. "Did he say that Egbert was a bad man?" she asked after several moments.

"He did."

"Do you think …?"

"Dunno. Your dad did mention that they haven't seen that 'odd dog' this morning. He seems to have skipped breakfast this morning. Your mum had made him a full English with extra sausage." He wasn't surprised that Coyote had made Himself scarce as soon as they'd gotten back that morning.

"Hmm. Well, lunch is almost ready. Help me with the boys."

Allie clinging to him, Harry paused at the back door to the kitchen, casting one last look over the sunny spring back garden. "Well, back to normal life in a few days, eh?" he said to his son as they entered the kitchen. Just as he closed the door, he thought he heard the distant yipping of a coyote.