"The Eve."

AUTHOR: Mystic25

RATING: PG13 For language and situations.

SUMMARY: A Christmas spent at the Weasely's two years after the final battle in Deathly Hallow. Alternate Universe

SPOLIERS: References to HP SEVEN.

A/N: this entire thing came about from listening to Josh Groban's "Believe"

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all characters associated with are the property of J.K Rowling. The lyrics for the song at each new chapter are credited to Josh Groban and the Polar Express. No money is being made off of either of them.

A/N #2: This has Harry/Hermione as well as other pairings, if any of that bothers you please read elsewhere.

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"Trains move quickly to their journey's end.
Destinations are where we begin again.
Ships go sailing far across the sea.
Trusting starlight, to get where they need to be."

-Josh Groban "Believe"

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BURROW

CHRISTMAS EVE.

"Ron!" Mrs. Weasely slapped her son's hand away from the serving platter of bread pudding he was hovering over.

"Damn Mum," Ron hissed at the stinging pain that had just been inflicted upon his knuckles with the back of the wooden spoon. "I wasn't doing anything wrong," His mother glared at him in such a way that said she knew he was lying to her, and he would be in deep trouble because of it. "Nothing wrong with sampling."

Mrs. Weasely glared at Ron even harder, he was nineteen now, and a good foot taller than his mother, but it was clear that she didn't let that bother her. "You may very well be a grown man Ronald Weasely, but as long as you're under this roof you'll do as I say!" She wiped at a flour stain on her face before leaning over the dining room table to make sure nothing had happened to the pudding. It passed her scrutinizing gaze and she turned around quickly to check on the numerous things she had boiling, baking and roasting in the kitchen.

She was so in tuned to the personal to do list she had going on inside her head that she nearly collided with Ginny who was coming out of the kitchen with a basket of baggetts.

"Mum!" Ginny performed an acrobatic move that would've landed her in Cirque De Solei, catching all of the breads back into the basket before any of them dropped to the floor.

"Sorry dear," Mrs. Weasely apologized to her daughter, but although her words were sincere she didn't even bother to stop in her stride to the kitchen.

Ginny shook her head at her frantic mother. She was like this every holiday season, but this year she seemed even more on edge. Maybe it was due to the fact that, even with her large family, she had never had this many people over for Christmas Eve Dinner before. She had woken Ginny up at the before dawn to help dust the house and de-come the garden. Ginny had no luck trying to de-gnome the garden; the little creatures seemed to sense that there was a big to do happening and made themselves extremely difficult to catch. But with Ron's help Ginny had managed to trick the small gnomes into an invisible fence like barrier she had hexed next to Mrs. Weasely's dormant red roses. They screamed and kicked, but they couldn't get out of the barricade, the entire ordeal had taken over an hour and Ginny and Ron had numerous "battle scars" to treat once they got back in the house. But all Mrs. Weasely did was scab them over quickly with her wand and ordered them to begin setting the table.

"Baggetts?" Ron eyed the bread Ginny was carrying to the table. "Mum always serves pumpkin rolls."

"Mum didn't make these," Ginny laid the basket down on the table next to an elaborate candelabra already lit with glowing candlelight. "Fleur did." She no longer spoke with malice about her sister-in-law, after she had proved her love for Bill after he had been attacked by a werewolf Ginny had to realize that she wasn't that bad. Fleur and Bill had now been married for three years and had two children, two twin girls named Elise and Jeanette. They were two years old now and their giggling screams were heard echoing in the kitchen where Mrs. Weasely and Fleur were preparing food.

Ron's ears pricked at the sound of his nieces' growing giggles. He loved the girls, but ever since they had turned two a few months ago they had been almost impossible to handle. He contemplated escaping up to his room to change for dinner before they discovered him. But before he could act on his thoughts the figures of his two tiny nieces peeked at him from inside the door less doorway of the kitchen. Their observation lasted only a second before – in a mad blur of force – they rushed on him, knocking him over backwards.

"Unky Ron!" Jeannette was the first one to reach him her white blonde hair tickling Ron's nose from where she had firmly gripped his neck. Elise gripped his middle; giggling for no apparent reason other than she enjoyed doing it.

Fleur had heard the bang from the kitchen and came rushing out in a blur of white satin and linen. "What happened?" Her long white-blonde hair framed her face in wispy layers. The white satin dress she was wearing, coupled with the color of her hair made her glow like a heavenly body; the crisp pink linen apron tied to her waist did nothing to cover up this beauty. She spied her two children clinging to Ron's prone form. "What haz gone on here?" She walked over to Ron in two inch heels. "Are you alright Ronald?"

"I'm fine," Ron's voice was muffled under Elise who had crawled up to his face and was currently kissing him. "It's just a couple of broken bones."

"Elise, Jeanette," Fleur took her two girls by the hand, gently pulling them off Ron's form. "You must be careful wiz Uncle Ronald." She dusted off the girl's dresses which were white satin, just like hers, except with a more modest cut at the bust line.

Ginny offered Ron a hand up, trying to hide the smirk that kept rising itself to her face. She dusted off Ron's back the way Fleur had done with the children.

"Are you sure you're alright Ronald?" Fleur asked again, her voice genuinely concerned, but Ron's face was now almost as red as his hair.

"I'm fine Fleur." Ron reassured.

"Don't worry Fleur, it's not the first time he's been beaten up by girls, and it won't be the last," Ginny added, this time letting the smirk spread across her face at the death glare Ron was shooting her.

"Ginny," Mrs. Weasely's voice trailed ahead of her form as both came out into the dining room. She had a wooden spoon in one hand and she waved at her daughter like she was waving her wand. "Is that boy coming tonight or tomorrow?"

"Tonight mum," Ginny said, but not without annoyance at having her boyfriend being referred to as "that boy." She had been dating Seamus Finnigan for almost a year now, and one night after he had come for dinner Molly had caught Seamus in Ginny's room, and since then she had been rather aloof with him.

Mrs. Weasely's eyes flashed with something that wasn't quite anger, but certaintly wasn't reeking of happiness. "I don't know how we're going to fit all these people inside this house. Fred and Angelina have decided to come up tonight as well – at the last minute."

"Angelina can always sit on Fred's lap mum, that would free up a chair." Ron said, knowing he would catch hell for his remark, but finding it rather fun to tease his mother. Fred and Angelina were engaged two months ago, and this would be Angelina's first holiday with the Weasely family.

Mrs. Weasely dealt a clout over Ron's head with the wooden spoon, then turned to Ginny and continued on in a more casual tone. "Have you spoken with Hermione dear?"

"Yeah, she and Harry will be here at six."

Mrs. Weasely smiled, but checked the cuckoo clock that hung on the wall to her right. It was twenty till six already and she still hadn't basted the Christmas Ham and was about to rip her hair out from Christmas preparations.

"I thought they were spending Christmas with Hermione's parents?" Ron asked confused.

"They are," Ginny returned. "They're going to stay here tonight and open presents in the morning, then drive up to London." Hermione's parents were dentists who lived and practiced in the North of London.

"Drive? Couldn't they travel by Floo?" Ron asked "Hermione's home is still connected to the network." Mr. and Mrs. Granger had had their home connected to the Floo Network to make it easier for Hermione to travel to their home in the event of an emergency at Hogwarts. The network had remained connected after the defeat of Voldemort, it was the new Ministry of Magic's way of thanking Hermione for her part in winning the war against the Dark Lord.

Ginny looked at Ron like he was a complete ignorant fool. "They're already going to travel by Floo to get up here. It's not good for Hermione to use it too much."

Harry and Hermione had been married last summer in June at the Burrow. It had been a simple ceremony, with the Weasely family and Hermione's parents. They then had moved into an old but very spacious town house in Oxford after Harry had given Sirius's house back to the Order – he loved his godfather, but the house was too large for two people. One month into their marriage they had recieved a shocked surprise – Hermione was pregnant. It was incredibly fast, and they were often riled about being sex addicts by Fred and George, but they were both happy about it.

"Ginny iz right Ronald," Fleur said. "It isn't good for a woman in Hermione's condition to travel by Floo too often. When I was exzpecting ze girls Bill would Apparatitie me everywhere."

Ron almost asked why Hermione and Harry didn't decide to Appartite into the Burrow, but then he quickly remembered that his mother cast a million protective spells on the house at Christmas. Even thought Voldemort had been defeated years ago there were still pockets of Death Eater resistance movements and Mrs. Weasely would be taking no chances. She left the Floo Network open, but she would not allow for any Appartiting inside her house, the Floo could be tracked, Appartiting wasn't as easy to trace.

There was a sudden knock on the front door that made Fleur, Ron, Ginny and Mrs. Weasely start. All of their guests would be arriving by Floo; and with all the protection charms only someone with the ability to break them like a Death Eater would be able to get this close to this house. Fleur's willow wand was in her apron pocket and she pulled it out instantly, thrusting herself in front of her girls. She walked a few steps towards the door, but as she neared the foyer, Bill emerged from the top of the staircase, laying a hand on her shoulder to stop her. His own wand was out in his hand and he pushed in front of his wife. He opened the door slowly, his wand raised, poised.

There was a sharp intake of breath, both by Bill and by the persons on the other side of the door. Are you two trying to give me a heart attack?"

Ginny's crazy thought that two Death Eaters had somehow tricked Bill into letting them in was corrected by a familiar voice:

"Sorry Bill."

"What the bloody hell are you doing coming up to the door? We were expecting you by Floo!"

"Believe me so was I," Hermione said, her voice overlapping with Fleur's who scolded Bill for his curse. "But apparently our plans changed without my noticing." She shot a sidelong glance at Harry, whose cheeks were red. But not from her glare, from the cold.

"Can we come in Bill?" Harry asked, he saw the glare Hermione was giving him, but he chose to ignore it, he wasn't in the mood to rehash an argument that had been having for over half an hour. "It's a bit icy out here." It had taken ten minutes for Harry to find the right charm that would disarm the house so he could knock without it attacking him.

"Of course," Bill's moved aside to let them in. Once they were both inside the house he quickly closed the door and reset the protective charms. It took some time because the charms were powerful and he was surprised that Harry had breached them at all. When his task was completed he turned to them with a warm smile: "Happy Christmas," he hugged each one of them as they entered.

"Hermione," Bill teased when his arms were wrapped around Hermione. Even over her long tan overcoat and woolen scarf he could feel the roundness of her stomach. "You've been filling out huh?"

Hermione smiled warmly at Bill's tease, when she was little she would often get into a fit over being teased, but she had been around the Weaselys for too long now and considered their ribbing to be gestures of affection.

She removed her scarf, and allowed Bill to help her out of her coat just as Fleur, Mrs. Weasely and Ginny came upon them.

"Hermione!" Fleur kissed Hermione on both cheeks, then held her out at arm's length, roaming her eyes over her knitted white lace Henley and black pinstripe boot cut pants, all the while saying a rapid string of approvals in French. "My dear you look magnifique!" she kissed her again. "Does she not look radiant mama?"

'Mama' was what Fleur had taken to calling Mrs. Weasely after she had married Bill. At first Molly wasn't too keen on the name, but after Fleur had used it enough she had warmed up to it. And she as 'mama' fully agreed with her daughter-in-law right now.

"Hermione," Mrs. Weasely embraced Hermione as warmly as Fleur had. She had watched the girl grow up since her first days at the Hogwarts Station and considered her as much her daughter as Ginny. "You look wonderful." Mrs. Weasely turned to Harry after Fleur had gotten through hugging him and embraced him.

Harry fell into the hug. He was three inches taller than Mrs. Weasely now, but he still fit into her arms as well as he did when he was eleven years old. "Happy Christmas Mrs. Weasely."

"Happy Christmas my dear." Mrs. Weasely returned warmly kissing Harry's cheek. She studied Harry the way Fleur had done Hermione, her thumb rubbing the spot where she had just kissed him. "Such a handsome face, it's no wonder that Hermione became pregnant so soon."

Harry coughed/choked at that remark and Hermione turned slightly scarlet, but both smiled in the end, because the proof to Mrs. Weasely's words was blatantly peeking out of Hermione's sweater.

Mrs. Weasely took Harry's coat and Hermione's from Bill, laying them on the sideboard that sat against the right wooden partition wall. "Have a seat, have a seat." She turned and nearly almost collided with Ginny again for the second time. "Ginerva Molly, you should really watch where you're going!" Mrs. Weasely pushed past her daughter like she had been dealt a great wrong and scuttled back into the kitchen

Harry dusted the snow that had fallen on to his camel haired blazer and blue dress shirt, all the while trying to repress a grin at Mrs. Weasely using Ginny's full name, but in the end the grin slipped out. "Poor Ginerva Molly, you do get blamed for everything."

Ginny glared at Harry. "If you weren't going to be a dad in a few months Harry Potter I'd kill you on the spot." Her glare dissoloved into a smile as she kissed him quick and chaste on the lips. "Don't know where Mum get's the 'handsome' description."

"You didn't seem to question it when we were going out." Harry returned.

"I discovered I really needed glasses after that night." Ginny volleyed back, crossing her arms over soft cornflower blue tunic.

"If you two want to be alone, I'll just wait outside in the car Harry Appartited us in." Hermione said, the anger clearly evident in her tone.

Harry sighed; he knew that Hermione would find a way to argue her way back into an argument. He loved her very much, but she had been opinionated since childhood.

"Hold on," Ron said standing beside Ginny. "You Appartitied an entire car?" His voice was shocked, but also held the curious excitement that had gotten him and Harry into a lot of mischief grown up.

"It was completely foolish!" Hermione insisted. "Appartiting was to transport individual people, not cars."

"It worked. I wanted to make it easier for you," Harry argued. "You used the Floo to visit your mum last week; it's not good for the baby to use it too much."

"I bloody well know about that, but nearly giving me a heart attack Appartiting in an entire Mercedes isn't good for the baby either!" Hermione's stomach did a cartwheel at the memory of feeling a 2000 lb car being dropped to the ground with her in it. They had landed in a clearing thirty yards away and had to walk in the snow up to the Burrow which had refused to let them in.

Harry sighed again, but this time it was a sigh that came with the realization that his plan had been flawed. "I'm sorry Hermione, I completely forgot about Mrs. Weasely's protection charms. I was only trying to help."

Hermione eyed him like something she wanted to slap for another minute, but she felt her anger dissolving. "I'll forgive you this time, but if you every try something so outlandish again Harry James Potter I'll hex off everything below your waistline!"

Both Ron and Harry cringed at the mention of what Hermione was going to dismember.

"A Mercedes Mate?" Ron as incredulously. He didn't know much about cars, but the name sounded important.

Harry nodded. "A Benz S Class," Ron's look didn't change at all. He wasn't obsessed with cars like Muggles; he had never even driven a car.

"It's like the Firebolt of cars," Harry said, seeing Ron's look of appreciation after using a comparison he could understand.

Harry's parents had left him a very large amount of money and Harry had taken the rest of it to the new branch of the Goblin Bank – enacted by the new Ministry of Magic – that exchanged Wizard currency for Muggle, which they believed would help them integrate into their world. He purchased their house with this money, as well as the car. He knew he couldn't very well ride a broom through downtown Oxford. Harry had wanted to be an Auror, but after the defeat of Voldemort Aurors were in limited hiring. However once it was obvious that Death Eaters weren't going to just go away at the defeat of their master, Harry had been accepted as a last minute candidate. But as Hermione's pregnancy had advanced Harry had been talked – rather forced by the head of the Auror department in London – to take a sabbatical. His spot in the Auror Training academy would be assured for him, but the director felt that he needed to be near his wife.

Hermione was a reference cataloger at the library Jordon College in Oxford – a position she loved because she got to be around books and intelligent minds all day – and through her ties she had gotten Harry a job as an assistant to the professor of Mythology. Harry's vast knowledge of hippogriffs, unicorns, elves and other such magical creatures had impressed the professor so much that he wanted to hire him on full time as an associate professor. But Harry had politely declined, he had wanted to be an Auror ever since his Fourth Year at Hogwarts, and as much as he enjoyed helping Muggles to understand this very real world, and that he and Hermione worked in the same place, he knew he wouldn't be happy there.

"Hermione Jean Granger-Potter."

Hermione turned to Ginny, confused at the use of her entire name.

"Sorry," Ginny apologized. "It's just everyone else has been called out by their full name." She raised her wand, and a few feet above it in the air sailed a sprig of mistletoe, she pushed it through the invisible expanse, stopping it just above Harry and Hermione. "I think it's time that you two kiss and make up; and no arguing. Neville told me mistletoe carries a powerful bad luck hex if you ignore it."

Harry turned to stare at the tiny leaves and berries sailing above his head. "You heard the woman," he watched Hermione shoot him another glare. "Hermione come on, I said I was sorry." When she didn't respond, he used another name on her, one he called her more in private then in public.: "Baby. Please?"

"Be quiet," Hermione said, but her words weren't angry. Instead she reached up and grabbed a hold of Harry's head and pulled him down for a kiss.

Harry wrapped his arms around her back, returning her kiss, glad that their argument was settled. There was a loud pop that didn't make them break apart – they were used to the sounds of the Floo Network, but the voices that came next were too hard to ignore:

"Go on suck and blow!"

There was another popping sound –lighter this time. "Fred Weasely, that's private!"

When Hermione broke from Harry she saw Angelina standing beside Fred who was rubbing the part on his chest she had just smacked.

"If they didn't want to be seen then they should've picked somewhere more discrete," the voice of George, Fred's twin brother sounded out beside Angelina. Both brothers lived above their joke shop, and Angelina had come by to pick them both up because their loft lacked a fireplace for Floo Traveling, it was kept warm only by a dying space heater that sat in one corner of their place beside a white washed window.

Angelina shot George a glare with the same force that had fueled the smack she had just dealt Fred. "You two can be huge prats you know that right?"

Fred grinned largely, and dipped Angelia dramatically. "But you find me irresistible anyway don't you?"

Angelina shook her head at him. "I don't know why but I do." She kissed Fred and pushed herself up so that he had to pull back in an upright position.

"Unky Fred, Unky Fred!" Jeanette and Elise came tearing into the room and jumped on Fred.

"Hey-Omph" Fred caught his two nieces in each arm and stood up with them. "Hello darlings, you two staying into mischief?"

The girls giggled, and began pulling at strands of Fred's hair.

"Hello darling," George said, draping an arm over Hermione's shoulder. "You want to get into some mischief of our own?" He wagged his eyebrows at her, then turned his eyes up to Harry. "I'm afraid if you want to fight me mate we're going to have to take it outside."

"Actually I think you need to watch out for Hermione more, she's taken Muggle martial arts classes before she came to Hogwarts." Harry said.

"Really?" George turned to Hermione with a suggestive look. "I wouldn't mind you taking me down Hermione."

Hermione couldn't help it, she was laughing now. "You're awful George Weasely."

"But you're not, and that's the problem." He kissed the side of her face. "Happy Christmas; you're looking marvelous."

"Ravaged as well," Fred came to kiss Hermione next, still holding onto the girls.

Both boys had never kissed Hermione before she had gotten pregnant, but she had gotten more attention from all the Weasely men after her pregnancy. But because she had been an only child growing up she didn't mind being doted on by them; and they didn't mind being over protective of her.

"You already have two girlfriends and a fiancé Fred," Hermione admonished, watching Elise and Jeanette continuing to pull at Fred's hair.

"I can make room for you love," Fred returned with a smile.

Hermione laughed quietly. "Maybe I can make room for you." She held out her arms to Elise. "You want to help me lay out grandmum's silver?"

Elise nodded in excitement and lunged herself into Hermione's arms.

"Are you ready for one of those Hermione?" Angelina questioned.

Hermione glanced down at her stomach, then over at Angelina. "Most defiantly." She walked towards the kitchen carrying Elise. Jeanette squirmed in Fred's arms to be set down and as soon as her feet hit the ground she took off running after Hermione.

Mrs. Weasely was coming out at the same moment – levitating a large serving platter of stewed yams ahead of her- and bumped into Hermione. "Oh dear, I'm sorry, are you alright?"

"I'm fine Mrs. Weasely," Hermione reassured. "I'm a rather easy target lately; I should really cast a shield charm on this belly."

"It's a beautiful thing dear," Molly reassured. "I loved my body during my pregnancies, I may have had regrets as to what came out-" she glared over at her two boys who hadn't even acknowledged their arrival to her. "But carrying them was a joy. Come on, there's tons to do that you can help with, just mind you don't lift anything heavier then this little one," She kissed Elise's fingers. "Or this one," she smiled down at Jeanette who came running past her. Molly let the girl lead the way into the kitchen.

"Happy Christmas to you too Mum," Fred said watching his mother's retreating figure.

"What's that about?" Ginny said once her mother was safely in the kitchen. "Mum's run into me twice and both times she's acted like it's my fault. But she barely taps Hermione and she's treating her like a porcelain doll that fell on the floor."

"It's because you're not pregnant Gin," Fred insisted.

"Nor is she going to get pregnant," Ron added. "If Seamus so much as tries I'll-"

"Come off it Ron, you couldn't hex your own reflection! Ginny retorted. "And what Seamus and I do is none of your business!"

"You're my baby sister, it bloody well is my business!" Ron hissed. "I didn't let Harry mess with you and I won't let Dean."

"Harry and I messed around plenty," Ginny argued, much to the dismayed glance Ron was shooting at her.

"Ginny please, keep it down," Harry said. "I just made up with Hermione."

"Hermione was the one who set us up Harry," Ginny reminded. "And I told her all about us, you're safe."

"All about us?" Harry asked worriedly, wondering how descriptive Ginny had gotten to his wife about their former relationship.

"Harry Potter, this is making you blush?" Angelina said amused. "You've got a pregnant wife now; you've obviously gone way past secret snoggings."

"Bloody way past," Harry returned.

There was a beat of silence before the room erupted into amused laughter.

"Right on Mate," George's voice was a salute to Harry.

"I've got to admit you're a lucky man Harry," Fred said. "Hermione was a bit bushy in the beginning, but she's filled out nicely."

"Thanks Fred," Harry said, not really knowing how to reply to a remark like that.

A huge tray of silver cutlery came floating into the room, followed by Hermione who kept it suspended in the air with her wand. Elise was still settled in her arms and Hermione let her grasp the end of the wand above where her own hand lay and help guide the tray to the table.

Harry watched Hermione interacting with Elise; a smile tugging at his lips before he turned a more mischievous smile on Fred. "I'll tell her you said that."

Fred actually looked a little fearful at the suggestion, but Harry got Fred back in a much better way. As walked over to Hermione, he turned the suspense anticlimactic with his next remark to her: "Let me give you a hand."

"I've got it," Hermione reassured sending the silverware flying across the table to arrange themselves in various settings. She saw the look Harry was giving her. Sorting silverware by magic wasn't like lifting a piano, but she could tell that he was just trying to help and she had just shot him down. "Here," she coaxed Elise into holding out her arms. "You can hold Ronald's niece for a while; she wears me out as much as he does." The words she spoke weren't harsh, they were completely affectionate, she kissed the child as she passed her to Harry.

Elise slid into Harry's arms very easily, and he felt her settle herself against his chest.

"Hi," Harry looked down at the girl, she smiled and immediately reached for his glasses, pulling them off his face and holding them up in the air like a trophy she had just one. Harry let her play with them, but when it became evident she was about to smash them on the floor he quickly stopped her.

"I'm afraid I need my glasses," He slid them back on his face. Elise reached out for them, starting to sniffle when he didn't let her take them off again. He shifted her higher up on his shoulder reaching into his blazer pocket for his wand. "Look," Harry held the wand out in front of her, trying to distract her from crying. "Look Elise, see what Uncle Harry made for you." He waved the wand in the air producing a tiny unicorn, the size of a tea cup that glowed with the same radiant light as his Stag Patronus. The Unicorn whinnied and ran around in a circle around Harry, producing a stream of white light everywhere it moved.

Elise had stopped crying and reached out her arms to the unicorn, laughing and trying to catch it in her fingers. She tried to catch the unicorn so hard that she leaned forward and almost fell out of Harry's arms.

"Careful love, you don't want to go flying without a broom." Harry pulled her back to him, rubbing her back; she smiled at him for a split second then chose to ignore him and watched the unicorn with rapt eyes.

Amidst all the silverware flying around Hermione observed Harry with Elise, at how quickly the girl had been won over by him, how gentle he was being with her. She touched her stomach briefly, suddenly aching for their child to be there, because she knew that he would be loved by his father the same way.

Two of her spoons had crash landed together while she was thinking about Harry and the baby, and they stopped the rhythm she had going on.

Harry turned to her after hearing the noise. "Hermione, are you alright?"

"Fine," Hermione said, levitating the grounded spoons and sending them whizzing to their proper place. She watched Harry approach her, the look in his eyes still not believing her. "I'm alright baby," Unlike Harry, Hermione readily used this pet name in public, much to the surprise of Ron who had heard her using it when they were in London a few weeks ago visiting Ron at his job. Ron worked alongside his father in the Ministry of Magic's Muggle Department, and it was a job he was extremely proud of.

She kissed the side of Harry's face, this time not missing a beat with her cutlery arranging. She watched Elise sucking on the end of Harry's wand. "You better take her in to Fleur."

Harry smiled at her "Yes Mum."

Hermione pushed him towards the kitchen, but she returned his smile. She sent the last two salad forks zinging into their place and finally the air above the dining room stilled. Hermione picked up the tray turning to take it back to the kitchen and spotted Ginny standing right behind her.

"What?" Hermione said of the look Ginny was giving her.

"Baby?" Ginny's eyebrows had risen so high that they were lost in the strands of her long strawberry red hair.

"Did you expect to call him Mr. Potter?" Hermione returned.

"Maybe when the lights are out," Ginny said with a knowing look.

Hermione shook her head at her friend, but when her eyes met Ginny's they had adapted a bit of a wicked look on them: "No I call him something else when the lights are out."

"Hermione Granger," Ginny's eyebrows had now erupted from her hairline. She and Hermione shared a mirthful look that only two women could posses when discussing sexual innuendo.

Hermione turned without a word – tray in hand- and walked back to the kitchen. Ginny followed; the mirth still evident on both their faces.