Chapter Thirty: Epilogue
Harry ran a grizzled hand through gray hair that still refused to stay flat, and checked his watch before examining himself in the mirror. Ginny would be back soon, and he wanted to be ready.
The last fifty years had been kind to him as far as he was concerned. He was sure he didn’t look a day over sixty, despite heavy wrinkles around his eyes; they spoke of constant laughter and a lot of time spent outside in the sun. His eyes were bright, and as he had aged, they seemed to grow younger in appearance, as if the older he grew the more youthfully exuberant he had become, instead of the other way around as was the case for almost everyone else. That drove Ginny insane sometimes, but he could tell she loved it. He was wearing an old Weasley Christmas sweater; Molly Weasley had kept making them right down to the day she had passed away at the age of ninety four, a year after her husband had died in a plane crash. He had insisted that if he could fly a broom he could fly an airplane, and Harry still chuckled at the memory. It had been a surprise, and they had all grieved for him, but Fred and George had made so many jokes about it then and since that no one could remember Arthur’s death without a smile.
The Weasleys had become a very well-known and respected family in the years since the final battle. Fred and George had made a fortune with their joke stores all around the world, and they kept insisting that Harry should receive a third of the profits. Harry had taken the money and saved it for charitable purposes. He had had more than he needed before he began his own professions. Both of the twins had married Muggles, much to everyone’s surprise, but the two women had adjusted well to being part of a magical world and raising magically gifted children whose fathers encouraged them to mischief. At least George still did; Fred had had quadruplets on the first try, and they were more of a handful than he and George had ever been. He had since decided that children needed little encouragement for such things.
Bill had continued working for Gringotts until he retired, and he and Fleur had had seven daughters, all of whom were as beautiful as their mother. It was said among the family that he had retired only because he needed more time to intimidate any potential suitors who came by with his scarred features. Bill admitted to it readily himself.
Charlie had worked with his dragons for years before finally filling Hagrid’s shoes as the Care of Magical Creatures teacher at Hogwarts. Hagrid’s pets and projects filling the forest had finally begun to demand almost all of his time, though he still filled the position of Keeper of the Keys and Grounds. He probably would forever, as far as Harry could tell. Charlie had been an instant favorite with the students; there were far fewer class injuries, but the animals he chose were still interesting.
Percy had become the Minister of Magic, after his father stepped down from the office to pursue his Muggle hobby. Percy had changed a great deal over the years, and he was a good Minister. Of course, no one had expected he would change completely, and he did talk often about how important this law or that case was, and how big his role in it was, but Fred and George were always willing to take him down a step or two if he needed it. Whether it was because he was married to his career or that his ego was too much to compete with, he had never married, though he spoiled his nieces and nephews mercilessly, much to their parents annoyance.
Ron and Hermione had bickered their way into marriage, divorced, stayed apart for two months, got married again, and then lived happily ever since. Both made different claims of what and whose faults had led to the divorce, but never where the other could hear. Harry and Ginny had spent those two months convincing them how miserable they were without the other to argue with, and apparently it had worked. Hermione had gone on in healing for a while; she had worked at St. Mungo’s for a while, and had become famous for her work with Neville when they managed to develop a potion that cured his parents of their dementia. After that, she had replaced Madame Pomfrey at Hogwarts, until she became the Transfiguration teacher and then finally Headmistress, where she remained still. Ron had gone on to be an Auror, probably taking advantage of the connections his father had provided as the head of Magical Law Enforcement, but he had made his own name at the Ministry and loved what he did.
Harry and Ginny had gotten married the day she turned eighteen, in a huge ceremony at Hogwarts. Since then they had had eight children, three boys and five girls, and had lived all over the world. Harry hadn’t known exactly how comfortable he could live on the interest from his Gringotts accounts until he finally went into the bank to see how much he had. Since he didn’t need money, Harry worked for experiences, and had done everything he had ever wanted to do, taking his wife and children with him whenever they wanted to. He had worked as a cabdriver, a waiter, a mechanic, and several other Muggle jobs, all just to see what they were like. In the magical world, he had taught almost every subject at Hogwarts at one time or another, both as the Professor and as a substitute. He had driven the Knight Bus for several years, claiming he met more interesting people that way than at any of his other jobs. He had worked the counters and in testing at Weasleys Wizarding Wheezes, and had invented a fair number of the more popular products. He had worked for a short time as an Auror because Ron asked him to, and he had been arrested twice by Ron at different times when he was pursuing business ventures with Mundungus Fletcher. Harry chuckled at the idea even to this day. Ron had been flummoxed with how to deal with the situation; all of the Aurors knew that no one could bring Harry in unless he let them, and Ron had sheepishly asked Harry if he wouldn’t mind. Harry hadn’t committing any serious crimes, more or less, and he had paid the fines happily, matching them with charitable contributions of his own. He donated all of his wages and earnings to charity; he didn’t need the money, and he had fun helping other people. Finally he had settled down as the flying instructor at Hogwarts, like his father before him, working for free. He had a lot more fun doing that, he claimed, than playing professional Quidditch, though he was always ready to join in whenever the family played; The Noble and New House of Potter had had a Quidditch Pitch installed fairly early on, and it was well used.
Harry still suffered from dreams of the other life he had lived in the Mind’s Eye, but they grew more infrequent as time passed, and Ginny was always there to support him when he needed her. She had never settled on a specific career any more than Harry had. At first, going along with all of his adventures took all of his time, and then as the kids kept coming, she devoted all of her time to being a mother, though she claimed Harry took more time and looking after than any three of the other children put together.
Harry made his way downstairs and into the living room, where the festivities would take place. He paused at the mantle of the huge fireplace, which was huge because the mantle hadn’t had space enough after a while, and had to be magically enlarged. Pictures from his adventures and of his friends and family covered the mantle and the walls on both sides for several feet, and there were hundreds more in photo albums throughout the house; Ginny had taken a liking to photography. The picture of Remus caught his eye, and he paused, thinking of his old friend. He had married Tonks, and they had raised a wonderful bunch of children together. He had gotten the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher back once McGonagall was in office as the Minister, and had worked there for the rest of his life. He had been incredibly grateful when Harry, working with Neville, Hermione, and ancient Professor Slughorn, had finally perfected the Wolfsbane Potion; it suppressed every symptom of being a Werewolf, including the transformation itself, and though it had to be taken three times during the month, and nightly during a full moon, they had managed to make it tasteless. Remus had always been an activist for Werewolves and others who were persecuted in the Magical world.
Harry finally came to his senses and, after a quick glance at his watch, dashed over to a cabinet and removed his Invisibility Cloak. He donned the cloak and moved into a far corner, thinking he was lucky he didn’t live completely in the past. Sure enough, moments after he was settled into hiding, the front door was unlatched quietly, and the tiny footsteps of over a dozen children could be heard entering the room, all trying very hard to be quiet. He heard Ginny’s voice in a whisper.
“Alright, everyone, get into your hiding places, and I’ll call Grandpa.”
Children laughed quietly in anticipation of the coming surprise for Grandpa’s seventieth birthday. Harry really didn’t mean to spoil surprises, truthfully, but having all of the knowledge of the smartest wizard of the age made it hard for people to keep anything. Harry tried not to use Legilimency on family, but sometimes he just couldn’t help it.
He watched as the children moved about the room. Almost all of them had his green eyes, though a few had brown or hazel eyes from his children’s spouses. Many of them also had unruly black hair, for which his daughters had always cursed him, though in this generation Ginny’s redheaded genes were showing through, and many of them had the fair skin and freckles to go with it.
One of his younger grandsons, Arthur James Potter, backed up until he was almost touching Harry, and Harry had to suck in his stomach to keep him from doing so. Sometimes he really regretted the fact that Ginny had learned the culinary arts from her mother so well.
Finally, Ginny called up the stairs.
“Harry, come on down, we’re going to be late for the party!”
He always took a long time getting ready for a party; he liked to fill his pockets with toys and trinkets from Weasleys Wizarding Wheezes for the grandkids, and money for the kids, whether they needed it or not.
Just as she began to look suspicious, Harry leaped from his hiding place with a roar, picking up little Arthur as he did and tickling the child mercilessly. Arthur giggled as he called for help against the invisible monster, and soon Harry was wrestled to the ground as the children attacked him. He gave up a good defense, throwing tickling charms with his hand left and right. He rarely used his wand for anything anymore, since he hardly needed the extra power or control.
Finally, Ginny hit him with a freezing charm and he was unable to move as the children tickled him until tears were running down his face from laughter.
“Okay, that’s enough everyone,” Ginny finally said, when Harry was starting to think that the tickling was almost as bad as a Cruciatus Curse. The children stopped immediately; no one ever disobeyed Grandma. Grandpa saw to that.
Harry sighed with relief as the children got off of him; he could have fought off the charm, but where was the fun in that? Ginny grinned at him as she helped him to his feet. His left hip bothered him from time to time, despite Hermione’s efforts at healing it. Harry had tried bull-riding on a trip to the United States three years back, and had broken it in four places.
“Are you ready for the party, Harry?” she asked, and Harry kissed her to a chorus of “ewwws” from the children.
“I’m ready,” he said finally, and they linked arms as they led the children out the door.
The End
Now check out the exciting sequel, Legacy of Sacrifice in the Post-Hogwarts category!
A/N: Well, that’s it. I honestly don’t think that J.K. Rowling will put in an Epilogue like this, where everything was tied up nicely and everyone lived happily ever after… Honestly, I did it for me, because I really want to know that they all do. I’m really grateful to everyone that has read from the beginning or close to the beginning and have left reviews. I’ve gotten some really helpful advice that helped me make the story a lot better. I hope all of you who read will spread the word and let other people know about it… maybe it’s hubris, but I think it all turned out pretty good, and I want lots of people to read it. =)
I have to thank my wife for sticking with me while I wrote this. She was incredibly supportive, and has been incredibly helpful with the proof-reading.
Of course I have to say thank you to J. K. Rowling, because without her the whole world wouldn’t exist, and that would be a shame of a travesty.
Well, I think that about takes care of the ‘thank-yous.’ I hope everyone enjoyed the ride!
-GhostCoon