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The Afterlife and Times of Myrtle Potter	By : NormanCharles Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Harry/Hermione Views: 19696 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: Okay, okay. I'm NOT JK Rowlings, I do not own Harry Potter. I make no money from writing these stories, I do it because it's fun and other people seem to enjoy what I write - the best of whom write review and tell me when I get it right and

Chapter List
- 10
- 11
- 12
Chapter 11: Goblin Customs, a
Proposal and a Voice from the Past

�Narcissa Malfoy needs to stay
in Azkaban and rot!� Harry growled vehemently.

�Why is that Harry?� Hermione
asked, �She�s never moved directly against you, and all she ever did as a death
eater was try to protect her son, I don�t think there�s any love lost between
Narcissa and Lucius.�

�How do you know all this?�

�Um, Myrtle told me.� She
would hang around in the library when we were researching horcruxes; remember
it was Myrtle who gave us the clue to the last one.�

�Yeah, she really came through
in that last battle too; she led the other ghosts onto the field to take over
the inferi.�

�She�d be glad to hear you say
that� Hermione said, blushing slightly.

�I haven�t seen her since the battle,
have you?�

�Oh, I�m sure she�s around,
listen, about Mrs. Malfoy, if you take the position as head of the house to
dissolve her marriage to Lucius then she would be your, well, warder is the
best way to describe it.� You could have her out of Azkaban and into Grimauld Place as, oh, I don�t know, your social secretary.�

�And Harry, that would make
you Draco�s head of family, it would drive him nuts!�

Harry grinned at the thought.

�How is it that you know so
much?� he smiled and chucked her under her chin.

�I told you, I�ve read every
book in Hogwart�s!�

He took her to one side of the
vault and kissed her deeply, �I love you Hermione Granger, I hope you know
that.�

She melted into him, reveling
in the warmth of his body, �please Harry, we�re in Gringotts,� she smiled up at
him, her eyes sparkling, �call me Mrs. Potter.�

He laughed and said �of course
Mrs. Potter, and I�ll be Mr. Potter, well, I guess I�m Mister Potter anyway,
huh?�� He thought for a moment, �I�ll be Mrs. Potter�s mister!�

�Sharpclaw,� he smiled �I
think I will take that ring, after all.�

�Very good Harry, and you�ll
be wanting these too� the goblin said as he held up the two chains �elf wrought
platinum, but the best thing is the charm.� Place one drop of blood from each
of you in each vial and you�ll be able to silently communicate with each other
no matter how far apart you are.�

�Oh that�s brilliant!�
Hermione?�

She looked up from the book
she had been perusing �um, yes?�

�Matching chains, will you
wear one?�

�Oh sure,� she said, excitedly
�they�re beautiful!� What goes in the vials?�

�I�ll show you later� he said
as he placed the chain around her neck and let her do the same for him.� He
loved the way the tiny vial nestled in her cleavage.

Harry�s stomach grumbled and Hermione
laughed and said �must be about lunch time.�

As they rode back to the main
lobby Harry said, �how do goblins greet each other when they meet?�

Sharpclaw said �with an
exchange of gold, a galleon will do nicely, each goblin holds out his or her left
hand and accepts the gold from the other goblins right hand, the exchange is
simultaneous.� When we part we use the same greeting, it�s always polite to say
�May your fortunes grow� or something similar.�

Harry was eager to use his
newfound knowledge and as he was leaving the bank he turned to Sharpclaw and
extended his hands in goblin fashion saying �May your fortunes go!�� And then
realizing what he said quickly added �to where it�ll earn the most interest!�

It took all the control
Sharpclaw owned not to laugh hysterically at Harry�s faux-paux and the
brilliant way in which he covered up the error.

�As may yours Harry, I hope
you�ll come back this afternoon to look over those applications?�

�Two o�clock?�

�Two it is, we�ll see you then
Harry.�

The other goblins were agog at
the exchange between one of the bank�s senior managers and the most recent hero
of the wizarding world.

�Okay� Harry said, �food
first, then shopping, what would you like?�

�Chinese� she said, without
missing a beat.

�Chinese?� he asked, �in
Diagon Alley?�

�Nope, two blocks south of the
Leaky Cauldron, we passed it on the way here.�

Harry had never eaten Chinese,
but Hermione insisted he�d love it.� The name of the place was the Wok-n-Roll
and it was doing a booming take-away business.� They sat at one of the tiny
tables and ordered from the menu.� He loved every bite.� Shrimp egg rolls, lo
mein, chicken in honey glaze, fried rice.� Hermione had a simple dish with a
long name Moo-goo-gai-pan, and Harry enjoyed his taste of that as well.� They
made it a standing date from then on, every Thursday they would have Chinese
for lunch, no matter where they were.

A very full Harry and Hermione
went back into the Alley to get fitted for their new clothes.� Simple daywear
that would work in either the magical or muggle worlds, shirts, skirts and
trousers, as well as shoes that were comfortable to wear and yet dressy enough
to go formal.� They each selected a set of dress robes, two sets of business
robes and various and sundry undergarments.� Hermione enjoyed trying on
different lacy under things that she had never worn before � �never had a
reason to before� she whispered in her sexiest, sultriest voice to a blushing
Harry.

He wanted nothing more than to
take her home, or maybe into an empty fitting room right then, Gawd she was
beautiful like this!� He couldn�t wait a minute more.� He dropped to one knee.

�Hermione Jane Granger,� he
said in the middle of Madame Malkin�s, with customers gawping on, �you have
been my best friend since our first year together at Hogwarts.� I loved you
then and I love you even more now.� Will you please marry me?� he pleaded as he
slipped his mothers engagement ring onto the third finger of her left hand.

She yelped and dropped to her
knees in front of him and shouted �oh yes, yes, yes!� as she peppered his face
with kisses.� A flash bulb went off as all the customers present broke into
spontaneous applause.

�Maybe we can skip the bank
and just go home?� he suggested, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.

They finished their shopping
and had the items shrunk to fit into their pockets.� As Harry reached into his
moneybag to pay Madame Malkin herself stopped him.� �Your money is no good here
today Mr. Potter, consider this our wedding present to you and the future Mrs.
Potter.�

�Perhaps I could be allowed to
pay for my fianc�e�s wedding dress, Madame?�

�We shall see Mr. Potter� she
smirked.

At two o�clock they were back
in the lobby of Gringotts.

�May your fortunes grow,
Sharpclaw,� Harry said, passing and receiving a galleon.

�As may yours, goblin friend,�
the goblin replied, �if you will come this way please.�

They followed him into a much
nicer room with a large desk and a conference table set about with comfortable
leather-covered chairs.

�These are the resumes of four
of our best managers; I have condensed the particulars into returns on
investment.� The highest returns on investment are not necessarily the best
indicator; rather the best would be the one who shows the most consistent
growth over the long term.�

�I�m not sure why, Sharpclaw,�
Harry said, puzzled, �but I seem to be drawn to this portfolio.�

�Ah yes, one of Gringotts
senior managers, he would be more than happy to handle your accounts if that is
your wish.�

�I�ve come to trust your judgment
Sharpclaw, would you trust this goblin with your financial future?�

�Turn to the last page Harry�
the goblin said and grinned.

It read, �Submitted on this
date by Senior Account Executive, Sharpclaw.�

Harry extended his hand, which
the goblin took very carefully, lest they have to exchange blood again, and
shook once.

�Harry, if your portfolio does
not increase by fifty percent by the end of this calendar year, I will remove
myself from your accounts and find a better manager, this I vow!�

A wizard�s oath was made on
his magic; a goblin�s oath was made on his life.

As the young newly-engaged
couple walked home they enjoyed a companionable silence, rounding the corner to
Grimauld Place the shadow of the dementor seemed to hover near the front door.�
Harry whipped out his wand but saw that it was only a long shadow cast by a
tree across the street.� As they neared the door Harry noticed two symbols,
runes perhaps, written in chalk on each of the steps leading up to the landing
of Number 12.

�Funny I didn�t see those
before,� Harry mused, �they are runes, aren�t they?�

Hermione nodded, �the first
one, the one that looks like a capitol letter �M� with long legs, is �Ehwaz,�
which usually means friend or friendship.� The other one, that looks kind of
like a small letter �n� squared off, with one leg longer than the other is
�Uruz,� which means courage.�

�Or bravery?� Harry asked.

�Um, yes, so friendship and
bravery, is that important somehow?�

�It is to me,� Harry said,
�you said it to me our first year, �there are more important things, you said,
friendship and bravery and-� you never did finish the sentence, but I think you
were going to say love.�

Hermione nodded, �yes,
friendship and bravery and love.� She looked up at him with bright shinning
eyes, �that�s you Harry, to the core.�

�That�s the second time in as
many days someone has given me that message, any ideas why?� he asked.

She shrugged her shoulders and
shook her head and said, �Let�s go in.�

As they neared the door Harry
picked her up, fumbled with the door handle and carried her across the
threshold.

�Silly, that�s supposed to
wait until after the wedding.�

�Hey, according to the
goblins, we�re already married!�

�We certainly had a honeymoon
last night� she said with a smile.

�We need to tell your parents,
love,� Harry said, �in fact, I should have asked their permission first.�

�I�m already at the age of
majority in both worlds Harry, but it�s sweet of you to want to ask.�� They
stepped into the library, �Um, would you mind sending them a message by
Hedwig?� I think it would be smashing if the groom-to-be were to tell them!�

�I have a better idea,� he
said as he sat down at the writing table, I�ll invite them to dinner and we can
tell them then.� How about tomorrow?�

�Sounds good� she agreed with
an unreadable expression, a smile that didn�t quite reach her eyes.

Just then Meacham announced
dinner.

After dinner they retired to
the library and snuggled together on the big comfy couch and read.� Hermione
was lying on her back, her head in Harry�s lap as he balanced his book on the
armrest.� His free arm caressed her flat stomach eventually coming to rest on
her right breast.

�Ummmm,� she murmured, �this
is nice; I could definitely get used to this.�

�Well,� he mused, �seeing as
how witches and wizards live two to three times longer than non-magical folk,
we could be doing this for about another hundred years or so.�

�Promise?� she asked.

�Promise,� he kissed the top
of her head, �never doubt that I love you Mrs. Potter.�

Inexplicably both Hermione�s
eyes filled with tears, which ran freely down the sides of her head.

�What�s wrong?� Harry asked,
concerned.

�I just don�t deserve you is
all,� she choked.

He let his book fall and bent
down to kiss her with all the tenderness he could muster.

She gave in to his
ministrations and unbuttoned her shirt to place his hand on her lace bra.

�Oh this is nice,� he
said, coming up for air, �who would have thought that sheer lace could be so
soft?�

�It�s a matched set� she cooed
dragging his hand down while simultaneously pulling her skirt up.� She rested
his hand over her warm, wet cleft and gyrated her hips suggestively.

�Hooo kay!� he said, sitting
up smiling, �my, my.� Look at the time!� Bed time already; where did the time
go?�

He lifted her into his arms
again and nearly ran up the stairs to the master bedroom, kicking the door shut
on his way in.� Once inside he let her feet drop gently to the floor and gently
pushed the white blouse off her shoulders and let it drop.� She unbuttoned the
side button at her waist and slid the zipper down so that her charcoal grey
skirt pooled around her ankles.� She took a step back and struck her best
Morgana�s Secret pose.

Harry felt as though he
couldn�t breathe, he started taking long, slow breaths as he surveyed the
beauty before him.� She was in a rose-red demi-bra which accented her 34B cups
nicely, his eyes traveled down past her waspish waist to the swell of her hips
sporting the matching high cut knickers.� His eyes then followed her shapely
legs down to her red leather ankle wrap sandals with the four inch �fuck me�
heels.

He wanted to say how beautiful
she was, that he wasn�t worthy of her that he could spend the rest of his life
trying and still not deserve her.� What came out was a cross between a sigh and
a groan.

She was ecstatic; she saw his
eyes take on that glassy look that meant his higher brain functions were
shutting down; she unfastened the front clasp on her bra then turned around to
slide the panties off her bum.� She knew that if she didn�t take them off that
he was about to rip them off and she wanted to wear them again at least once!

While Hermione was bent double
from the waist she started to undo the leather wraps on her high heels when he
growled out �no.�

Hermione�s eyebrow arched
upwards, �no?�

�Leave the shoes on,� he
ordered hoarsely.

He moved to capture her but
she put both her hands on his chest and said, �One of us has on entirely too
many clothes.�

�Give me a hand?� he asked.

She slid around behind him so
that she could reach around with both arms and unbutton his shirt.� As she did
this his hands came around to caress her bum.

She unbuckled his belt then
unbuttoned his trousers and pulled the zipper down.� While her hands were in
the neighborhood she reached into his boxers to grasp his bone-hard erection.

�Oh I�d say we�re ready baby�
she cooed.

She reached under his T shirt
and pulled it up over his head, then wrapped her arms around his chest for a
soft, warm bare hug.� Then she hooked her thumbs into the elastic of his boxers
and pulled down stopping only long enough to say �shoes.�

He kicked off his shoes then
stepped out of his trousers and boxers.� He reveled in the heat of her, her
heels put her wet center near his bum cheeks and he could almost imagine the
musk rising as steam from the juncture of her legs.

She grasped his erection and
frog-marched him to the bed, then said �turn around.�

When he did she pushed him
back onto the bed before falling on top of him trapping his boner between them.�
She slid up on his abdomen until her steaming entrance was just beyond the end
of his cock, and then she reached behind herself to guide him in as she slid
into place.

She was so wet that, tight as
she was, he went in easily. She reveled in the feel of his length and girth
filling her, the paradoxical softness and firmness of him as she began to rise
and fall and grind his flesh-pole into herself.� Up, down, a little wiggle as
she bottomed out on him, then up and down and grind, and again, and again, and
again.� Hermione�s body felt the familiar tingle that had been denied to her
for so long, she moaned �oh Harry, oh baby, oh fuck me oh fuck me oh fuck oh
fuuuuuuuuck!�� After that she alternated between screeching and moaning and �oh
fuck�-ing.

Harry had both hands full of
bum cheek as she bounced and he thrust in counterpoint trying for that extra
penetration.� He had been without for so long, without physical intimacy to be
sure, but without love in all of its connotations. And now he had a goddess bouncing
on his balls and he loved her will all that he was.� As the familiar pressure
began to erupt from the base of his cock he cried �I love you My Mione!�

And that said it all.� They
might have been fucking rutting like a pair of stoats but they were first and
foremost making love.

They continued to dance the
dance of the ages throughout the night, napping for an hour or so before
starting again, never really separating and Harry�s cock never completely
softened and besides, Hermione�s �kitty� wasn�t about to let him go.

The next morning came way too
early, but they hunkered down into the duvet still coupled like a pair of
Siamese twins joined at the sex.� Hermione was spread eagle across his body as
Harry lay on his back.

�Bullocks� she said.

�What?�

�Need the loo, really
need the loo!�

Harry threw off the duvet, and
then carefully slid to the side of the bed, keeping his �morning wood� inside
Hermione.� He sat up and she wrapped her legs around his middle.� He stood up
taking her with him and she thought �oh I love being with an athlete!�

He walked into the bathroom
and started the shower, which magically produced hot water instantly, then
stepped into the shower and said, �you can go now if you want.�

She groaned in relief as she
let her bladder empty.� The smell of ammonia filled the shower for a few moments
as she let go a long golden stream all over Harry�s cock and balls.� When she
was done she said �thank you love, you�re a life saver� and kissed him.� He
responded by putting her back against the wet tiles and sawing in and out of
her as she was pinned against the wall.� The pent up fluids from their �all
nighter� drained out of her as he continued to pump and she produced even more
lubricant as she began her �fuck me� mantra yet again.

Harry loved it when she
screamed his name and �fuck me� in the same sentence.� It was always a turn on
for him.� He rammed into her, reveling in the warmth, the tightness of her.� He
had numbed slightly from all their exertions the night before so it was a good
fifteen minutes before he groaned her name yet again and shot ropes of sticky
come into her womb.

After that his legs felt like
so much rubber and he reluctantly let her down, where she found she was equally
wobbly.� They soaped and rinsed each other thoroughly, then just to be sure,
did it again before leaving the shower very clean and refreshed.

Harry�s accio pulled
soft towels from the shelf that kept them magically warmed and wrapped Hermione
in one like a balmy terrycloth hug.

�Oh baby,� she cooed, �you�re
hired!�

�For you Mrs. Potter I�d
gladly work for free.�

�You just want to have your
wicked way with me� she smirked.

�I just want to be with you�
he said with such sincerity that she began to tear again.�

�You don�t know how long I�ve
waited for you to say that to me� she choked.

�Now, now� he said, pulling
her into a gentle embrace �no tears today, you�re here, that�s all that
matters.�

The were still locked in their
embrace when they went back into the bedroom to find the bed made up with clean
fresh sheets and their clothes laid out for them cleaned and pressed. They
reluctantly released each other and dressed, then explored the master for the
first time.�

Hermione squealed in delight
as she saw the dressing table, complete with combs and brushes and with enough
drawers and cubbies to accept even Lavender Brown�s extensive makeup
collection.

Harry opened up the wardrobe
and was surprised to see all of their purchases from the previous day hanging
neatly, his to the right and Hermione�s to the left.� It was, of course, a
magic wardrobe in that the inside was much larger than the outside so that it
was, in effect, like walking into another room.

�It�s bigger than the bedrooms
at Privet Drive� he mused.

�Oh Harry, it�s brilliant,
there�s more than enough room for all my things � and then some!�

They were startled from their
explorations by the sound of an elf clearing his throat, �good morning sir,
ma�am, sorry to intrude but I need to know if you�ll be wanting breakfast or
lunch as its past eleven of the clock.�

She looked up at her fianc�
and asked, �pancakes?�

He smiled back at her and said
�Meacham, can we have pancakes with black currants?�

�Very good sir, this morning�s
Prophet is on the small dining room table as is the reply from Miss Granger�s
parents and a note from a �Gred and Forge� Weasley.�

�Thank you Meacham,� Harry
replied, �have you picked out a room?�

The little old elf smiled and
said �yes sir, a proper room with a real bed and dresser and wardrobe and even
my own bathroom.� Apparently this house was built with human servants in mind
and I�ve moved into the butler�s quarters on the kitchen side of the coach
house.�

�We have a coach house?�

�Yes sir, would you care to
see it after breakfast?�

�I�d like that very much,
thank you.�

The little man bowed and faded
from sight.

�It�s a little disconcerting
the way he does that,� Harry said.�

�It�s his way, he�s a
house-elf and they are always there, never seen.�

�You don�t suppose he�s,
y�know, there when we�re, um . . .�

�No Harry, good house elves
always turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to the intimacies of the master and the
mistress of the house.�

He was obviously relieved.

�To breakfast, Mrs. Potter?�

�To breakfast, Mrs. Potter�s mister!�

As they entered the small
dining room they saw the mail and paper laid out on the table.� The wizard
photo on the front page showed Harry on one knee placing a ring on Hermione�s
finger and then her falling to her knees to hug him fiercely, then repeated.

Harry groaned, �I�d hoped to
break this to our magical friends, well, gently.��

The headline read �Man Who
Triumphed Engaged! by Rita Skeeter.�

Harry read the first page of
the article with Hermione reading over his shoulder.

�� Yesterday the Man
Who Triumphed startled onlookers at Madame Malkins by proposing to his long
time friend Hermione Granger, fellow Gryffindor and a girl that has been
rumored to be romantically linked to Mr. Potter, as well as Victor Krum, world
cup seeker.� Miss Granger had most recently been romantically linked to Ronald
Weasley, described by those in the know as �Harry�s best mate.� �Mr. Weasley,
the youngest of the Weasley clan, was an unfortunate casualty of the final
battle with Voldemort, nee Tom Riddle earlier this week.

�� Some readers might
say that it is too soon after the war�s end and that these young people are
rushing headlong into a lifelong commitment.� These gentle beings should
remember that these two young warriors of the wizarding world have been friends
for the better part of a decade and have surely seen each other at their best
and worst.�

�� This reporter is
delighted at the announcement, which in no small way vindicates my report from
the Tri-Wizard Tournament that recognized the sparks in the air when these two
are anywhere near each other (story continues on page 3).

�Well she got a couple of
points wrong, that�s to be expected� Harry said, shaking his head, �Ron is not
the youngest Weasley and we didn�t become romantically involved until, let�s
see, today is Saturday?�

�I know I�ve fancied you since
our first year Harry, I�m sure anyone with eyes could have seen that.�

�I wish I had known then,
love.� Think of all the time we�ve wasted.� I would have loved taking you to
the Yule Ball, and as my date on Hogsmeade weekends.�

She smirked, �exploring broom
cupboards, the astronomy tower.�

�The prefect�s bath . . .�
they said simultaneously, and laughed.

They read the note from
Hermione�s parents, delighted to come, asking for directions and asking if they
could bring anything for dinner.

They opened the letter from
�Gred and Forge� and were startled by a loud bang and the sound of noisemakers
and confetti, which fell into the butter dish and syrup pitcher.

The not-quite-a-howler but
just as loud announced:

�Congratulations you two; and
congratulate us too!� Padma and Pavarti are the newest members of the Weasley
clan!� Take it from us mate, elope! No muss, no fuss, no botha!�

The message ended with another
bang and more confetti, which Meacham magically dispelled, a written note was
included,

Mum and Saas (mum in law) Patil
are furious of course, they wanted to have a big to do over the brides� dresses
and such.� Dad thinks it�s great and Susar (dad in law) Patil is beside himself
with relief because he�s not going to have to put out for two very expensive weddings.

On a more serious note, tread
lightly around mum, with Ginny in jail and Ron in St. Mungo�s she�s about ready
to explode.� She turned and interesting shade of white when she saw the evening
edition of the Prophet announcing your engagement, she�s getting herself worked
up about you and Hermione and Ron and Ginny and you don�t want to be there when
she explodes.� All we ask is that you try to understand where she�s coming from
in all this, she has, essentially, lost her two youngest children.

As for the rest of us, good on
you mate, you too Hermione, everyone knew you two belonged together, well,
almost everyone.� Some people are delusional.

Party at the Burrow, next
Saturday starting at six; be there or we will come after you!

Lurve and such,

Mr. and Mrs. and Mr. and Mrs.
Weasley-Patil

�Sweetheart,� he asked, �how
do you feel about eloping?�

�You find a suit, I�ll ring up
the vicar, or priest or rabbi or bishop or the captain of the ship we�re
sailing on� she said with a broad smile.

�Oh, you�re all right with it
then, good� he returned her smile, �but I still want to let your parents know,
speaking of which, what should we serve, is there anything they don�t like,
food-wise I mean?�

�Oh, um, just about anything.�
We could do a roast and potatoes and they�d be fine, lots of fresh veggies, and
um, a nice dessert, maybe a trifle?�

�Did you get all that
Meacham?� Harry called out over his shoulder.

�Yes sir, may I suggest a
London broil?�

�Sounds good Meacham.�

�Very good sir.�

�Hey, let�s check out the
carriage house� Harry said expectantly.

�Through the back door in the
kitchen, sir, past my quarters and the basement steps.�

�Thank you Meacham.�

They walked into the old style
carriage house to find, not a carriage, but a workroom, or rather a hobby
room.� The walls were covered in tools, both familiar and unfamiliar.�
Workbenches were covered in dust cloths and in the middle of the floor was the
unmistakable shape of a motorcycle under a heavy canvas cover.

�That must be Sirius� old
motorcycle� Harry whispered.

He drew the cover off to
reveal the 1969 Triumph Trident 750cc three cylinder classic.� It sported a
midnight blue gas tank and matching side covers and had evidently been charmed
to repel dust and rust, it looked like a new bike on the showroom floor.

Harry whistled, �I�m gonna
need lessons before I can ride this.�

He eased himself onto the seat
and checked the fuel tank, it looked about three-quarters full.� Harry saw the
key in the ignition and turned it to the run/start position.� He moved the bike
slowly forward and back, to make sure it wasn�t in gear then put his left foot
on the kick-starter and gave it a quick push down.� The three cylinders
thrummed into life and rumbled at idle like an oversized jungle cat.� He set
the key to the off position and the sound seemed to echo in the carriage house
for a while.

�Definitely need riding
lessons!� he enthused.

�You do all right by me�
Hermione smirked, �riding that is. . .�

Harry smiled and said, �I�m so
glad you�re with me woman, because you�re insatiable and I just
can�t get enough of you.�

�Y�see� she smiled as she sat
on the seat behind him �we�re perfect for each other.�

�Can we go back to Madame
Malkin�s today, sweetheart?� Harry asked, �She said our clothes would be ready
by now.�

�Okay� she agreed.

�And while where there, why
don�t we pick out a nice white dress for you?�

�Um, okay� she said, a bit
confused, �but why white?�

�Isn�t that the traditional
color for a wedding dress?�

She squeezed him from behind
and buried her head in the juncture of his neck and shoulder �don�t you ever
change, you wonderful man!�

They decided to floo to the
Leaky Cauldron first, and then walk into Diagon Alley from there.� When they
arrived at Madame Malkin�s their purchases were indeed ready.�

�Madame,� Harry asked �could
you show us some of your bridal, um, dresses and stuff?�

The good madam let them into
her bridal shop where half a dozen stunning designs were already on display.

�Mr. Potter, would you care to
look at our catalog while we discuss Miss Granger�s measurements and
preferences?�

�Um, sure� he answered.� He
hadn�t thought about looking through a catalog, but it seemed like a good way
to pass the time.�

Bridal dresses, it seems, were
designed to be worn only once, not that Harry minded, but an awful lot of work
went into making something that was so, temporary.� It would be better, he
thought, to just transfigure an everyday outfit, then when it reverted to form
it was still wearable.� He thought this while looking through the catalog,
seeing dresses that were too long, too short; this one had a neckline that went
down to the navel.� One had a ridiculously long train, one had a silly pillbox
hat, and one was . . . familiar?

�Where have I seen this
before?� he thought.

Then he remembered. Pictures.�
Wedding pictures.� His parent�s wedding, his mum, Lilly, was wearing a dress
like this, where she would dance with Sirius forever in his beloved family
photo album.� He looked up to see both ladies looking back at him.

�See, my dear,� Madame Malkin
was saying, �it never fails, the groom-to-be always finds a style to his
liking.� It�s part of the �charm� of my catalogue.�

�Can you do this?� he asked,
his voice cracking with emotion.

�In a trice,� the good
dressmaker said, �now shoo!� You do not get to see the bride in her gown until
the wedding!�

�But I found the dress!� he
protested.

�And for that we are very
grateful Mister Potter, now, shoo!� Quality Quidditch Supplies it four doors
down, good day!�

And so it was that Harry found
himself walking down the Alley when he heard what sounded like a sob coming
from a side alley.

�Hello?� he called.

He drew his wand and heard
what sounded like a little girl sobbing in a large empty room.

�Hello?�

�You�re a great wizard Harry,�
the little girl�s voice said.

�Not as good as you� he
replied, knowing those were the words he must say.

�Books and cleverness, there
are more important things.� Friendship, bravery and-�

�Lumos!� Harry cried.

The dementor seemed to flow
like oily water into the open window of a cellar before Harry could call forth
his patronus.

He knew that voice.

It was the voice of an eleven
year old girl.

It was the voice of Hermione
Granger.

_____ooo000ooo_____

Author�s note: for you
motorcycle aficionados out there the Triumph�s of the 1960s, even those sold in
the U.S. had kick starters, and they were on the left.� Everything was
reversed, throttle on the left, clutch on the right, foot break on the left,
gear shift on the right; going back and forth from my buddy�s 69 Triumph
Bonneville to my 74 Honda 500 4-cylinder took some getting used to.� Great bike
though.� I still ride.� I ride a Honda V 45 Magna that was built in 1986, which
makes it officially old enough to drink in the State of Florida.� Still runs
great.
- 10
- 11
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The Afterlife and Times of Myrtle Potter