Epilogue

Philip opened his mouth "The fu-"

"Phillip!" The Queen barked while Death pouted. "Lady Death please don't encourage them. Now Duke Gryffindor you have an operation going on Mars?"

Harry shrugged sheepishly "More of a series of experiments that, well might have gotten slightly out of hand but one thing led to another Ma'am and well, here we are."

Elizabeth turned to Hermione and narrowed her eyes "And you have permitted this as if you can get Mars colonized magic can be 'discovered' in an alien race."

Zara grinned at Hermione who was imitating a fish out of water "Told you she would put it together as soon as she found out."

TFS

"Hermione there will have to be an entire history concocted. How will you deal with the magical that appear spontaneously amongst the population? That is letting alone getting the other magical governments to buy into and support this idea."

Hermione sighed "Your Majesty I will not pretend to have all of this worked out. Some truths have become apparent though. Magic is genetic. Magic can also be brought about by a change in the normal human genome induced by proximity to a ley line while the fetus is forming as we think happened in my case. That there was somewhere in my genes a dormant magical gene from the Blacks only made this more likely in my case. While science is not to be fooled popular science with its theories of aliens and abductions and aliens building ancient monuments could easily be swayed. We could help so many more than we do now Ma'am. We could have a civilization where there is no crying need unserved where children don't starve or die of thirst, where men and women don't risk their lives to maintain basic order."

The Queen sat for a moment "Oh Hermione, my dear girl. This world you speak of can only exist without man in it. There have always been and will always be men and women not afraid to advance themselves at the expense of others. Your Harry knows this. You provide the idealism he needs but he provides the willingness and ability to deal with those people. He also acts as a check on you, perhaps embodying your killer instincts. What stopped you from killing the entire Wizengamot that day? Harry was alive, that's the only thing that stopped you.

Should you colonize Mars? I think yes. Things on this planet sometimes reach moments where I despair for humanity. It would be wonderful to have a viable human population somewhere safe.

Should we expose magic? After we have a bolt hole for magicals, Mars for example, it might be possible with the agreement of the other magical governments. It's something to keep you busy when you are through having children dear girl.

Will man ever be the noble creature it is possible for him to be? In my dreams dear girl, only in my dreams, and then in yours."

Hermione sighed "Well, we have ten years before it becomes crucial to have a presence there waiting and that is if the commercial attempts are even remotely viable."

Elizabeth smiled at her "Now James and Astoria?"

Hermione sighed "The most watched romance in history I think. James is of course all manly about it Astoria is going very slow and keeps falling apart over being a bad Aunt. Long walks in the fields. Evening rides, days on the river. I despair of them ever actually getting on with it."

Elizabeth grinned "The Goring is still in business." Hermione blushed and Elizabeth smiled "Send them to Bunny island Hermione. Out from under the eyes of the world they might 'get on with it'.

TFS

Astoria awoke on a beach blanket nude and covered in that delicious smelling coconut oil they all used. She turned her head and blushed. James Gryffindor was lying beside her just as nude and just as oily. James opened his eyes and grinned "The 'rents appear to have gotten tired of waiting."

Astoria sat up "Come on lets portal back so I can kill them."

James sighed "Portal is locked. Dad is the only one that can lock it from me. Well Mum or Aunt Luna could but they would have to add charms. Dad just used the locking rune. We're stuck here. We don't have to do anything."

Astoria looked at James stood up turned around and sat on him. "Not waiting anymore."

TFS

Daphne went through the portal and came right back blushing furiously "We should wait a while." Harry pulled her to the side and the stunner came flying out of the portal and hit a tree behind it. The tree toppled.

"Never did like the gumballs. Hurt my feet." Harry shrugged.

Daphne turned to him and he folded her in his arms and kissed her. Hard. Elizabeth Greengrass rolled her eyes "Bang the old lady later Da. We're supposed to be getting Astoria and James back."

"Beth! Old Lady! I'll old lady you young woman!" Daphne glared at her daughter who smirked at her "How are you my daughter? No decorum at all."

Beth snickered "Dads daughter too." Daphne sighed. Beth was her father's daughter, well-muscled, broad shouldered, narrow wasted, big busted, perfect hips and butt, long legs and an open engaging face with sparkling startlingly green eye's under sun bleached shoulder length hair, brown as a nut, standing there in cut off shorts and one of Harry's old dress shirts with the tails tied at the waist and a pair of cowboy boots on her feet.

"Did you just come from the north forty? What are you wearing?" Daphne asked as she fought Harry's hands back to publicly acceptable positions instead of one headed into her designer jeans and one slipping under her top.

Beth nodded "Breaking ground. Something's wrong with my tractor I needed Da to take a look."

Harry perked up "What's it doing?"

Daphne huffed "Harry take your hand out of my pants if you are going to talk tractors with my daughter!"

Beth grinned "Need a minute or two Da? Give her a wobbler and we can go look at the tractor."

Daphne focused on Harry "Don't you dare Harry not right out here in the yard. Harry! Oh Merlin Harry Harry!" Daphne finally realized she was lying on sand and went with it. When she came back to herself she was looking at Astoria sitting cross legged on the sand in front of her.

"As entertaining as seeing Harry fucking you stupid is was there something you wanted?" Astoria asked.

Daphne gave her a glare that softened "James didn't erh."

Astoria smiled "No I fucked him unconscious before you showed up the first time. I was just getting off him when you showed up."

Daphne smirked "From him more like, you were still shaking."

Astoria arched a brow and gave Daphne a significant look. She was still shuddering occasionally. "So the portal is back open? You all need something from James or I, so we are done with warm sandy sexy time?"

Daphne sighed "The portal is open and no if you two want to stay here that's fine but we thought if you hadn't gotten his undivided attention by now you might want an escape."

Astoria snorted "Bitches. I should superglue all of you shut. If this hadn't worked so well I would. Thanks by the way, it was exactly the right situation. At home we are under to many eyes all the time."

Daphne grinned at her "We thought so. So how was it?"

Astoria gasped "I am not giving you cows' details!"

Daphne rolled her eyes "Not details Tory. Was it what you hoped? Is it real?"

Astoria smiled and nodded "I am his, he is mine, we are ours."

"You are a goner."

The sisters giggled madly.

TFS

Beth looked at her dad in the cab, Harry nodded "That noise can't be right. High pitched metal on metal screaming. Damn we don't have time or money for this." Harry frowned "Brand new CVX 150. Isnt even out of warranty so the artificers haven't even looked at a rune set for it. I'll call Peel."

Beth shrugged "I can use my pulling tractor."

Harry shook his head "Nah, don't want to mess it up. Sides it's too hot and it doesn't have a cab. You'd be blowing dust buggers for a week. We'll drag out that old 2590 of mine. It needs some exercise anyway. Just remember it's not four wheel drive so stay out of the wet spots or you'll be levitating it out again."

Beth smiled and nodded "I love Smokey Joe. Thanks Daddy! Oh bring the big chisel plow with him. I can hit most of the holes with a wing."

"Finish this strip and park up by the tobacco barn. I'll go get him for you." Harry disappeared. Beth sighed. She would never find one that good. Well she would just have to build one. Charles Longbottom was a likely lad and he was interested in farming. She put the tractor in gear and eased out on the clutch after firewalling the throttle. Might as well give Peel and Co. some real work. She dropped the chisel plow off its wheels and was amazed as the CVX didn't even grunt. No smoke at all. Well she would cure that soon. She would get her fill of soot with Smokey Joe turned up like Daddy liked him. That forty foot double wing twenty four point chisel plow only liked him and it was fun mostly break steering as the front wheels just bumped the high spots no matter how much weight was on the front. It's what got her ready for pulling. Of course Joe had every trick they knew on him. He could pull a D8 cat backwards.

TFS

Luna looked around wearing the oxygen mask and shook her head "Warmer, still not ready for you to pin me down and give me a Martian though Harry."

Harry grinned "Pressure is up to the equivalent of about thirty thousand feet on earth. Measurable humidity too. I'll have to give Rose Zeller something nice for that runeset that converts ice to liquid water.

Luna rolled her eyes "You already did Harry. She should be delivered any day now."

Harry blushed and Luna chuckled "You don't remember do you?"

Harry shrugged "The Horned Warrior remembers all of you but Flora as you. I remember but it's not the same as when I am with you all. Does that even make sense?"

Luna shook her head "No but its fine. The women are all happy about it and the Duchy goes from strength to strength. Now what about this over seeding with all these lichen Neville has found?"

Harry shrugged "Might as well. Worst that could happen is that it dies. How have we done on the bore hole?"

"Well. It is a cold core though. We have some ideas how to fix it and bring the planetary mass up at the same time. We put one of the portal rings in a close solar orbit and one in the center of Mars, we catch a solar flare and heat up the core. Then we add iron from the far asteroid belt. Of course if we ever need to remove the fissile materials from the mundanes warheads we can just stuff that in there." Luna shrugged.

Harry shook his head "Yall are going to kill this poor planet trying to make it habitable."

Luna shrugged "As long as we don't vaporize it it's all good according to Neil."

Harry frowned "I don't remember him saying that."

"Mass, needs all the objects to keep the orbits stable, interlocking system blah blah blah."

Harry laughed "Now I know he didn't say it. Blah blah blah. He's not that cartoon vampire."

TFS

Harry walked Lily down the aisle and when asked he growled. Lily rolled her eyes and fiercely whispered "DADDY!" out the side of her mouth.

"Her mother and I." Harry said in a bone chilling growl and James Tran paled. The church full of young men rethought their designs on Gryffindor daughters. That was terrifying from back here. And he liked the Trans.

Harry returned to his seat to the glares of nearly a hundred young women. Harry had shown no less concern about his Beltane daughters than he had for his other daughters. Beth snuggled into his side "You show em Daddy."

Daphne rolled her eyes. Elizabeth was going to be an old maid. Charles Longbottom sat on the other side of Elizabeth nodding at her every word. "Hmmmm, perhaps not."

Hermione sat on Harrys left dabbing at her eyes. First James had come back and married Astoria and now Lily was marrying James. She was so happy! Harry looked at her and snorted. She pinched him. "Hush you great lump."

Harry danced with Parvati at the reception and she lay her head on his chest. "We did it Harry."

Harry sighed "You did. I have an apparently never ending stream of them to let go."

Parvati lifted her head and laughed at him "She'll be back here being all matronly before you know it."

"The fuck you say, I got 'em an apartment over by the hospital. She can be matronly over there. I got enough matrons around here." Harry nodded firmly.

Parvati laughed and laughed.

TFS

Harry was sitting at the table when Lily came in and got a plate and sat down. "Hey aren't you supposed to be eating at your house?"

"Poor young doctor married to a poor young engineer remember? You were there when it happened Daddy."

Harry sighed and all the wives smiled. Luna came in in a bikini bottom and a t shirt that said 'Alien on Board' with an arrow pointing to her barely there bump. Harry took his sandwich to the kitchen island as it became an estrogen fest.

TFS

Amy Bonny looked at the data and typed like a demon. Dew on Mars. The geeks would freak.

TFS

Harry looked at the note and then at Death. She sighed "Yes Harry. He didn't need help. He was very tired. He is in his version of heaven though."

Harry nodded "We'll go to the funeral. I liked the Field Marshal."

Death nodded "I did too, eventually."

TFS

Harry looked at the dome and then at the women inside of it. All of the wives in those see through shifts. All of them were grinning and dancing. Harry grabbed Hermione and bent to kiss her knowing that Beltane on Mars would be without the Goddess and Horned Warrior. Hermione smirked at him and in that strange language asked "Oh really my warrior?" Harry shunted off into the little corner of his mind and contemplated the vagaries of magic while the Goddess and the Warrior tried to shag each other to death.

TFS

All of the wives had Alien on Board shirts now and it was becoming a thing. Katherine was thinking she could get one too but might be done after that. Roger looked at her and smiled "I'm ready when you are love."

TFS

Harry sat in the porch swing and looked over the valley. "Penny for them Daddy."

"Hello Beth. Hey shouldn't you be off somewhere trying to get Charlie in your pants."

Beth arched a brow "I get Charlie in my pants fine thank you. Now what are you contemplating?"

Hermione came out the door onto the porch "Your father has just discovered there is an order of merit list for Beltane."

Beth laughed "How did you think a bunch of women agreed on something Daddy? Set standards give a girl something to shoot for."

Harry sighed "Sometimes women can be very mercenary."

Beth nodded "From about the time we start bleeding."

"Beth!"

"Oh hey mum didn't see you over there in the dark. Now what bothers you about it Daddy?"

"I don't really know Pumkin it just seems a little, well discriminatory."

Beth nodded "There are only so many hours dusk to dawn Daddy. Of course you could do two, one on each side of the dateline. You did get through those fifteen lycan in Afghanistan and you normally get through the eight and then a few of the close security." The wives goggled at Beth who shrugged.

Luna nodded "I hadn't thought of the dateline."

Zara cleared her throat "Just as a point of clarification we aren't even considering stopping the Beltane ritual? Not that I mind but well...does anyone else find it strange we don't even think about not loaning Harry out for a night once a year?"

Susan smiled "Like it's strange that we share Harry and don't mind but our daughters freak over sharing their husbands?"

Beth added "Or boyfriends. Freaking cows need to find their own."

Daphne facepalmed "A doctorate in psychiatry and psychology and this is what I get, and boots with no socks."

Beth grinned "Blah blah blah artifact of your shared trauma blah blah."

Daphne slapped Harry on the arm "Do something with your daughter."

"Me, my daughter? What the hell. I remember you there too." Jerry appeared with a tumbler with two fingers of Swor Road bourbon in it, well not bourbon but the same method just not in Kentucky, by sixteen miles. "Cheers Jerry you're a mate." James walked out on the porch "Ah reinforcements. Just in time to save the old man son."

James eyed the women and sat in a rocker, Astoria followed him out with two beers and sat in his lap. "Surrounded again Harry? Drag em off to the island and shag em some. Always chills them right out." Astoria grinned at Daphne who spluttered.

Beth shook her head "Oh no you don't Daddy. We have that auction at the end of the week."

Hermione sighed "As much as sand, sun and pounding...surf sound really good right now we have to adjust the wards around the probes too Harry. Ann Bonny has been taking out the evidence of dew but she says it's happening everyday now."

Harry sighed "Those NASA guys scattered the things all over the planet. That will take days."

James had a thought "What if we were disillusioned and stuck a ward stone to the actual lander or satellite?"

Padma perked up "Oh that would be a nice project for my graduate warding program candidates."

Hermione nodded "The manned missions aren't really proving out so we'll have some more time."

Tonks pulled up a rocker and cracked a beer "We could still bolt if we had to though right?"

Harry sat up "Something we need to worry about Squadron Leader Tonks?"

Tonks shrugged "These ISIS fucks aren't going away and the mundane Russians are still a problem. Just making sure our options are covered."

Harry nodded "I really don't want to raise kids on Mars. I don't like that cosmic radiation thing and with that light gravity the kids might be nine feet tall."

Death adopted her base form and drummed her claws "Something wrong with nine foot tall people?"

Harry waggled his eyebrows at her "No rowr, want some candy little girl?"

"DADDY! Stop that, you'll warp my psyche." Beth barked. "Death are you blushing? You are! Oh my god! Brain bleach please!"

Niloufer smiled "Time for bed children."

"Aaarrrgghhh Mother do something about your wives!"

"I can think of one I want to do something with." Daphne gave Death a sultry look and Beth fled. Astoria towed James away laughing.

TFS

Amanda Bones looked at her half-sister "Why are you laying out here in two rifle patches and a yard of dental floss? Charles coming by?"

Beth growled "He better."

Amanda rolled her eyes "I told you not to hang out around Dad and the Mums. What happened?" Beth told her about last night and Amanda nodded "She is dead sexy like that."

Beth groaned "I know but who expects their Mum to put the moves on their other Mum?"

Amanda laughed "They were just having fun with you."

"The fuck you say, nearly knocked the wall down in their bathroom. I went in there to see Dad this morning about the Green place and the master suite was destroyed. There were claw marks across the headboard." Beth shuddered.

Amanda grinned "So Dad's still the man then."

"Amanda! Eewwww!"

"Daddy's girl, you just don't like him getting laid with that giant Electra complex you have."

The wrestling match got under way immediately.

TFS

Fleur looked at the geometric rows of square mile plots and sighed. Gabrielle looked at her "What's wrong Fleur?"

Fleur waved at the plan "It has no romance, no soul. It's like an industrial complex."

Gabrielle looked at the map legend "Mars. Tharsis region. This is above the eventual level of the projected ocean? It looks like an aerial view of any farm region except the fields are much more regular."

"Harry, Neville, Beth and Charles have no soul. Crops here, woods there in the ground not as good for crops, grazing lands in the worst possible ground. Houses? Tower blocks five hundred stories tall in the very worst possible ground or under the ocean. Bah!" Fleur flipped her hand at the map. "The whole planet will be a giant geometric blanket. Where will my grandchildren be inspired by mountains and waterfalls? Where will they wander wild forest full of deer? Where will they see the massive cathedrals and soaring cities?"

Gabrielle looked at her sister "Are you pregnant again?" Fleur glared at her and she held up her hands palm out. "Your husband is a farmer with a world to feed. Not all of the land will be suitable to that. You can take the Olympus Mons and make a citadel like the Al Mansurs. The Hanging gardens of Mars, imagine."

Fleur hugged her "Remind me to get you something nice, now I need some golems. If Harry can have golems building his fields I can have some begin work on the city."

Gabrielle blushed "You could get me Harry for a night or two." She said wistfully.

Fleur froze and looked at her "Another one?"

Gabrielle sighed "They just do nothing for me, then they get upset and pushy or they leave. I can't get him out of my head Fleur I am so so sorry."

Fleur nodded "Come to the House for dinner Sunday. Wear something nice but not to risqué, bring a medium modest bikini and we will start our campaign. Hermione always knew this was coming and the others have wondered what is taking you so long. They expected you for a Beltane."

Gabrielle flinched "I could not, I would never leave."

Fleur smiled "We might have to tie him down and jam you on him the first time or two but we will make it work."

TFS

Ann Bonny felt the hand on her shoulder and knew the game was up. The IT guys had been tracking her down for weeks. "Ms. Bonny. Come with me please."

Ann nodded "Just one minute and then we can go." She finished the string from the satellite and went with the security men.

TFS

Christina Hammock looked at the data. "You don't look like you've worked for NASA for ten years. You look like an intern."

Ann smiled "A fact of my biology. I am in fact forty four. This is a position I took for my Liege to keep you from discovering things we weren't ready for you to know."

Christina opened her mouth and then closed it when the young man in blue jeans and a work shirt appeared. "Sorry Ann I was in the barn. My mirror was off."

Ann bowed her head "Your Grace."

Harry turned to Christina Hammock "Want to go to Mars for an afternoon Ms. Hammock?"

Christina was a bit stuck on him appearing from thin air "Sure, the Docs are already going to call me crazy, why not."

Harry grinned "If they call you crazy I'll take them and leave em there."

Christina found herself in a warm back yard and blinked "OK head injury then. I hope I'm OK."

Harry laughed and laughed "Here put this suit on. The pressure is up to about half earth normal and it's still cold as hell. Not that much oxygen either."

Christina put on what looked and felt like a high altitude pressure suit and looked around "So where does the dream go from here?"

Harry grinned "Second star to the right and on 'til morning." He took her hand and walked her into the portal.

Christina came out of the portal and looked up at the sky. "So I went to Mars in my dream. Doable, I've seen enough images." She looked down and out over a vista of men working removing rocks from fields and piling them at the edges. "Martians!"

Harry laughed and laughed "Golems. They're good for simple manual labor and doing the prep work. We think we are still twenty five years from the first rains."

"Lichen! Martian Lichen!" Christina gasped.

Harry sighed "This isn't going at all like I thought it would."

TFS

Harry walked through the portal and stripped off the pressure suit. He sat in a rocker on the porch and watched as the scientist all came back through the portal. Gabrielle rubbed his shoulders "Tough day Harry?"

Harry pulled her to him and gave her bump a smooch. "No more than usual. They just can't seem to get over it."

Gabrielle snorted "Better than the governments trying to tell you you couldn't own Mars."

Harry sighed "I know, we shouldn't have done that Beltane there. Merlin's curse tied that planet to me through my 'essence'."

Gabrielle smirked "So much essence all over the place. Everyone pregnant all the time, such a burden." Harry spun her and smacked her on the bottom "Promises, promises 'Arry. You know I like ze English vice."

"You like everything Aunt Gabby. You better come dad they're starting again." Beth looked at him.

Harry nodded and walked in the house and into the living room which now had one wall as a mirror. "Duke Gryffindor you will surrender Mars to be administered by the UN."

Harry looked at the speaker "Erh no. If you want to try to take it from me talk to magic, I'm happy for you to be in charge of it. Who are you by the way."

"Johan Cline, German Ambassador to the UN. We have voted. The decision was for you to turn over the Planet and all methods to access it to us."

"Bully for you. No."

"We can have a security council resolution to force you sir!"

"Look behind you." Harry waved at Death.

Johan turned and then fell out of his chair. "Johan Death, Death Johan. Now Johan go back to whatever you were doing and stop bothering me. Get the mundane governments of this planet to do the right thing and stop worrying about my planet." The portion of the mirror Johan had occupied went silver. Harry looked at Jennifer "Whose pocket is he in?"

Jennifer smiled "Oddly no ones. A true believer."

"Sweet Circes dripping cunt, we should kill him now." Harry sighed.

Jennifer blushed and pointed at the still active mirrors. Mohamed was rolling on the floor laughing as were the Chinese and Japanese Emperors. The Queen was smiling. Harry blushed "Sorry."

Niloufer was sitting in the living room in an arm chair with her head in her hands "Harry really, must you be so profane?"

The Chinese Emperor rose and seated himself swatting away flunkies "Please don't stop him Sultan. The Duke is the highlight of my dottage, well besides his son. Jie Dong appeared with her son who ran to the emperor "Grandfather!" The boy turned to the screen "Father!"

Harry smiled "How is school Xuan?"

"Fine father. Not as fun as Overlook. The teachers are all a million years old." The boy told them all.

"It's important to learn the old ways Xuan." Harry smiled "You'll be home on the weekend. Jie how is my favorite Chinese wife?"

Jie arched a perfect brow "Are there suddenly more?"

Harry stumbled and back pedaled much to the amusement of everyone else. Mohamed sighed "As fun as watching the Mighty Duke of Magic be disassembled by an eighty pound flower of China is, can we really just tell the mundane to go fly a kite Harry?"

Harry shrugged "They won't remember it tomorrow if they talk or Fleur will make them appear total idiots and then they won't remember. All the scientist sign the oath in blood and as it turns out it binds them. They can't talk about it. NASA is desperate to get portals to put on every body in the system large enough to tie one to so they can send people to them in suits. I offered golems but they want people. So it doesn't really seem they will endanger it. Plus from what Pansy tells me they save a mint so we charge them three quarters of a mint. They are driving us crazy running around here measuring magic like we never thought to do that, but we do get some use out of them. They have interesting ideas. They also have some pretty bright people who have helped us a lot on Mars. Of course now that we don't have to worry about what the satellites see them roaring all over the planet in those trucks and needing the occasional rescue is slightly irritating but as long as they stay off the crops and buildings its fine. They pay for the consumables and the trucks they wreck. Besides I have nine Martian children. The only Martians in the Solar system, and a division of magical troops with air support willing to defend them."

Jie spoke up "About the carbon dioxide Harry, Father wanted me to discuss the kudzu machines with you."

TFS

Harry blinked "Gold, platinum, iridium, iron all from the far asteroid belt. Uh ok so we are shutting down the collecting runes as we now have enough pressure on Mars, what about oxygen and nitrogen?"

Luna smiled "We're still collecting nitrogen from the arrays out in the asteroid fields. the fields on Mars are now producing and making oxygen, the metals were, are to keep the mass the same on Earth but we might as well make money off of it, can't believe it never occurred to us before. We will never have to struggle again. Of course we can't just spend it willy nilly, but we can convert an ounce or twenty a day."

Harry frowned "Hey wait a minute, that atmosphere we are building has weight won't that shift Mars's orbit?"

Padma shrugged "It had an atmosphere and water before. The orbit should change slightly but it hasn't. Drives Neil crazy."

Beth walked out the back door and sat in Harry's lap "Hey you have a boyfriend. CHARLIE come get your girl off me." Beth snuggled in and pouted, Daphne sighed.

Charlie appeared "I proposed."

The group froze. Beth gave her father a watery smile "I said yes."

Harry hugged her "Good Pumpkin. Great as a matter of fact! Spectacular. Goddamn Charlie good job! JERRY!"

Jerry appeared with a tray of champagne flutes "First vintage from Mars Master."

It turned into a roaring party. Daphne cornered Beth eventually and raised a brow, Beth sighed "It felt like I was leaving him."

Daphne chuckled and hugged her "Brought him a son is what you did. A good one too. He will always love you."

Beth nodded "Objectively I know that. But that isn't what it felt like."

Lily stepped up "I know right? It's tough when your first love is so freaking spectacular."

The mother and daughter goggled at her and then Beth giggled "How drunk are you Lils? Finally letting the truth out there like that."

Daphne rolled her eyes "We're all just glad none of you daughter's daddy issues overwhelmed you."

Beth snorted "Well if you don't count being the pickiest most possessive bitches on two planets."

They all giggled like mad.

James Tran looked at Charlie "I feel honored to have been chosen really."

Charlie nodded to him where they were standing a little away from the women "Me too. A lot of hard work went into that."

James put his finger to his lips "Shhhhh. No need for them to find out there is a merit list and training regime for Suitors. James is brilliant, setting that up."

Charlie nodded "He knows people. His sisters especially."

TFS

"Giorgio A. Tsoukalous, This guy wrote all kinds of books or something around the turn of the century didn't he Fleur?" Harry turned to her as the stood on the top tier of what used to be the Olympus Mons.

Fleur nodded "He must be a squib we missed. Born in 1978 but still looks forty or so, he's over a hundred."

Harry shrugged "Is it really a problem?"

Susan, lady Bones, shrugged "I don't think so. With the advances we have made most people assume something is going on from the polling we have done. As long as it benefits them they seem happy. The retirement areas let most of them know anyway when their parents move here and they visit. I mean really with a sky like that they would have to be fairly foolish not to figure it out." They all looked up at the half sized sun in the sky.

General Wilkes (Ret) nodded "Their parents would disown them for making trouble. The benefits for us old folks of this light gravity are astounding. Gave me another hundred years."

Katherine nodded "It's amazing really. Still have to raise the children on earth but after they stop growing they live here and stay much healthier much longer or at least that is what the data is showing us."

Hermione nodded "It's the lack of pollutants in the air, ground and water too. With the portals constantly filtering and moving the bad molecules to the core it's nearly a perfect environment." They all turned and looked out over green fields as far as the eye could see and from 21,229 meters under wards to keep in pressure you could see pretty far. Clouds were still rare.

General James Gryffindor added "The Division intelligence service concurs with Aunt Sue Dad. It doesn't seem to be a problem. What worries me is the intent wards on the portal system are still picking off beings and we still have to interrogate and try them."

Hermione nodded sadly "Before she abdicated in favor of William after Charles had that heart attack and died the Queen told me there would always be bad people in the world. I guess it extends to all sentient life."

Death shrugged "Always some go to their hell. Always have, apparently always will. Less of the ones I have to go jerk loose now though."

Harry nodded "You'd think with nearly free medicine, food, water and education it wouldn't happen but some people are apparently just shitheads."

"Harry language!"

Daphne sighed "Are you going to keep that up for the next thousand years Hermione?"

"Yes."

Luna grinned "So for our next trick Gliese 832C!"

Astoria rolled her eyes "Not those seven they discovered in 2016?"

Luna snorted "Orbital period of a day? You' be flung off a planet that light moving that fast."

Lily Gryffindor smiled "Yes Aunty Luna."

Harry shook his head "I'm going to have to have a nap first. Sixteen odd light years might be a little tiring."

Hermione spluttered and the others laughed, she still hated it when Harry just did whatever he wanted with no regard to the laws of magic or physics. Hermione stamped her foot "We will send a probe first. The twins have the new one nearly ready."

Padma huffed "If they don't crack the moon again."

Hermione nodded "Yes."

Harry rolled on the patio laughing. Hermione kicked him a little.

Edward, Deaths oldest sighed and disappeared. He reappeared a few minutes later and announced "We can try to see if the portal I put there works? "

Everyone froze and Hermione rounded on him "You are so grounded!"

Edward blinked "The fuck you say, I'm fifty four Mum!"

"Language young man and yes I fucking say!" Harry rolled around on the ground more turning slightly blue. "Don't just roll around down there laughing yourself to death you pillock, do something about your son!" The others had to sit down for a moment as this latest madness had them all in tears of laughter.

Fini, for now.

AN: The next one will be a Harry Potter Star Wars AU crossover I blatantly ripped the main idea for off from Bluminious or rather Plums who says Bluminious inspired it. Or some one or two bangers here in the Potterverse. Same posting schedule. See you next Wednesday.