THIRTY-TWO

Five years later...

Fairytale Ending

A shriek sounded from below, causing Hermione to jump. She lifted her gaze to Ginny who simply stared at her in return and shrugged her shoulders. "Do you really want to know?" she asked, going back to wiping the excess lipstick from the corners of her mouth.

Hermione snorted and turned back to her own finishing touches on her make up. "Not really."

There might have been quite a few children running amok in her house, but they were vastly outnumbered by adults. Whatever was going on downstairs, someone else would handle it. Besides, she was sure if she stepped foot outside of her bedroom, she would find herself being shoved right back into it until it was time.

"Any guesses on the culprit?"

Hermione snickered as she got up from the bench at her vanity to find the earrings she wanted for the occasion. "My money's on Scorpius," Hermione replied with a sigh. "He takes after Draco far too much in the trouble maker department."

"Yes, because Aurelia is such a bloody angel."

Hermione rolled her eyes, but didn't bother to comment. Her eldest child, Theo's daughter, would be five soon. She was a social butterfly who talked even in her sleep. She had gotten Theo's blue eyes and Hermione's unruly curls. She slept with a book under her pillow and was so sly with her words, one could never tell if they were being insulted until it was too late. She had both her fathers wrapped around her little finger and used it to her advantage at every turn. Not that Hermione didn't cave to her either.

Scorpius was Draco's son and had just turned three a few weeks prior. Where his sister wanted to learn everything about everything, he had his favorite things and stuck with those, leaving the rest to the wayside. He wasn't one to go up to strangers and try to befriend them, but once he got close to someone, he would also talk their ear off. Just as Draco predicted, he had gotten the signature platinum hair. In fact, he was such a mini Draco that it drove Hermione crazy. The only thing in looks that made him hers was the slight wave to his tresses. Regardless, she loved him all the same.

"Please, we all know if James is here, the two of them are probably up to no good together," Hermione deadpanned.

Ginny sighed and dropped her lipstick into her makeup bag. "You know they're only going to get worse as time wears on. Wait until they hit puberty."

Hermione groaned at that. "Between James constantly chasing after Aurelia and his and Scorpius' fondness for getting into trouble, we're all fucked."

Ginny's laughter was contagious and soon Hermione was trying her hardest to fight back tears so she wouldn't ruin the makeup she had just finished applying. They had had that feeling since they'd discovered they were pregnant at the same time; Hermione with her second and Ginny with her first. It was easy to see that the boys would be fast friends; they were always around one another and it was clear from early on that James was taken with Aurelia. It was completely endearing and they all hoped, but would never push for that dream to come true.

"Whatever it is, it sounds like they've got a handle on it now," Ginny said as melodic laughter floated up from the floor below.

"Do you think it would still bring bad luck if I went down there and saw them if I'm not technically a bride?" she asked, her heart skipping a beat at the sound.

"You can make it another ten minutes," she said, giving her a forearm a squeeze.

As if on cue, the door to the bedroom opened and in came Pansy, her other bridesmaid for the day. She looked stunning with her black hair in the perfect updo, creamy skin, and dusty rose colored dress that matched Ginny's. "I have Astoria moving everyone to their places. The children are with their grandparents to keep them occupied. Anything you need before we head down?" she asked.

"I'm good."

Pansy nodded and then gestured for Ginny to come with her. "We'll be right back to get you."

With the master suite to herself, Hermione stood in front of the full length mirror in the closet and stared at herself. They had been planning the commitment ceremony for ages, but put it off when they found out she was pregnant with Aurelia. Draco had volunteered to let Theo be the first to knock her up since they had known each other the longest. And within two short months, they were at the doctor's office confirming their successful attempts.

It had been an intense pregnancy, one that left her not so keen on having another until she was good and ready. Not only did her body need to fully recover, but she needed to mentally prepare herself as well. And when the time was right, she and Draco started the process all over again until they confirmed their efforts had paid off. And she thanked her lucky stars when Scorpius turned out to be the easiest pregnancy ever.

And now that she had two kids, she wasn't sure that she wanted another. She had a girl and a boy; one from each of their fathers. It was the perfect balance. One that she didn't want to upset. Neither Theo or Draco had broached the subject either so she figured they were just as content or they were waiting for her make that call.

Either way, adjusting to motherhood had pushed their idea of a commitment ceremony further into the future. There was never any rush for it either, since it was just an excuse to through a very lavish party with all their friends and family. Someday she had hope that the legal system would welcome the idea of a relationship such as theirs and recognize a legal union between them, but until that day, this would suffice. It was already more than they needed anyway as neither of them planned on going anywhere.

She played with the flowy skirt of her dusty blue dress and waited until Pansy and Ginny came back to collect her. Down in the living room, Aurelia was bounding over to her right away to show her the fresh rose petals in her basket. Scorpius wasn't far behind her with his own basket. They had all decided he was too young to hold the rings. Those were currently with either Harry or Blaise.

Someone cued up the music and Pansy sent her children, arm-in-arm, down the aisle runner that had been laid down starting at the base of the stairs and out to where she could catch a glimpse of her men. Next was Blaise taking Pansy's arm and leading her out there. Ginny gave her a quick hug before taking Harry outside. And then she was alone with her father.

"You look beautiful, Hermione," Russell said, the tears in his eyes making her own spring to life again.

"Thanks, Dad," she whispered.

And then the music switched and everyone stood up. Her eyes immediately fell on Draco and Theo the moment she was down the last step. They were staring at her with their own glassy gazes and she stopped trying to fight the tears. She was sure she held her breath the entire way, only releasing it when her father stopped to kiss her cheek and send her off to her grooms.

They held out their hands for her to take and with each word they spoke to each other, the more their voices cracked. They made their speeches as if they were vows and then she slipped matching silver bands onto each of their fingers before they put a slightly more embellished version on her finger at the same time. And then, with their loved ones cheering them on, they sealed their words with a round of kisses.

As they faced everyone, hand in hand with her between them, Hermione knew she had found her happily ever after.

A/N: Well, here it is! It's shorter because it's more an epilogue, but it turned out far better than I could have ever hoped for. Thank you all for your reads/reviews/favorites/follows on this one! It was so much fun to write and, while it went under SEVERAL changes in the outlining stages, I'm incredibly pleased with how this one came to a close. I love you all so much!

Eternal Alpha love to honeysweetcutie

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