Harry

"Gin!" I called. "I'm home and have a surprise!"

There was the sound of paper rustling, footsteps and then she appeared at the top of the stairs.

I spotted James and Albus in the doorway to the living room, trying to see the surprise.

"Hello Harry, how was your day?" She asked me, descending the stairs.

"Good thanks. Yours?"

"Good. I got a lot of work done, so that's out of the way for the weekend."

"Well that makes this a whole lot easier then. I have booked a table for the two of us at a restaurant, along with a babysitter."

"Have you, indeed?"

"I have."

"Who's the babysitter?"

"Andromeda. Why?"

"I wanter to make sure that you didnt book a muggle babysitter again." She rolled her eyes.

"That was an honest mistake. He was advertised as a magical man, who could put even the most difficult children to bed on time!"

"You found him on the muggle website Gumtree."

"Again, an honest mistake. It was sorted out in the end anyway, wasn't it? And this time it's not someone from Gumtree, it's Andromeda, and she's brining over Ted."

"And she's definitely okay with looking after them? Merlin knows that she's getting older and a certain child of ours is living up to his namesakes more and more."

"She's definitely up for it." I confirmed. "And Ted's excited to see his god-siblings, too. So we need to get ready. The table's booked for 7 o'clock, and it's now half five."

"What time are Ted and Andy arriving?"

"Half six. We'll drive, because this little one wouldn't like apperation." He told me, placing a hand over my stomach.

"Sounds good to me. So James, Albus?"

The two boys came into the hallway.

"Yeah?"

"You get a slightly later night tonight, but only if you go to bed now." Ginny told them.

"How does tha' work?" James asked.

"You go to bed now, have a small rest so that when Teddy and Andromeda arrive, you can wake up and have a play. Then you can go back to bed." She explained.

"Why?" Albus chipped in.

"You have to go back to bed, because you can't stay up all night." I replied.

"Why?"

"You'd fall asleep anyway."

"Why?"

"You aren't able to stay awake that long."

"Why?"

"You'll get tired."

"Why?"

"That's how our bodies and brains work."

"Why?"

I was ready to kill George for teaching Albus that word.

"Santa doesn't like children who ask too many questions, Al. So how about you-"

"...Why?"

***

At bang on half six, Andromeda and Teddy arrived.

"Hi! How are you both?" Ginny greeted them both as they entered the living room, soaked through due to the torrid rain that thudded on the roofs.

"Ah, we're okay. Yourselves?"

"Good thanks. Wow Ted, look at how much taller you are!" He smiled at us happily, showing a ,issing tooth.

"My tooth fell out the other day!"

"Really? That's exciting, isn't it? How much did the tooth fairy leave you?"

Everyone looked at me weirdly.
"What? Don't tell me you don't have the tooth fairy."

"Harry... The "tooth fairy" is a muggle thing. I'd've thought you'd know by now that it's the tooth pixie." Ginny told me, looking at me as though I were a new species of dinosaur, and she were an archaeologist.

"Of course it is! Why wouldn't I know that?" I replied sarcastically.

"He left me two whole sickles!"

"Well you better keep them in your bowtruckle bank."

"I've already done that! Where are James and Albus?"

"Upstairs." I told him. "Shall we go and get them?"

He nodded, and led the way.

"So, Andy, how are you coping?" I heard Ginny ask, as I climbed the stairs. The rest of the conversation faded as I reached the summit.

Teddy opened the door, revealing James sitting on his bed. He put down the book (Little Rabbit Foo Foo) and stood up.

"Teddy! Hello!"

"Hi." The rainbow-haired boy wasn't nearly as enthusiastic to see his God-brother as his God-brother was to see him.

The next stop was Albus' room. There, we found the toddler in his cot, staring curiously at the mobile hanging above him. After the boys once again exchanged greeting, we went downstairs.

Once the small talk was over, Ginny and I left.

The drive was short and - due to the lack of children - peaceful. With a pale sky, and small flowers cropping up across the grass, it was no surprise that the air had the spring crispness that we met upon exiting the car.

We entered the restaurant foyer, and Ginny gasped beside me; the interior was gobsmacking. Unnecessary pillars sprouted from the floor, tall rods of quartz; the carpet was a ruby red, as smooth as ice; a large balcony hung above the reception desk, chiseled from light marble; like a cinema, there were large boards displaying items, but unlike a cinema, it was the variety of food, all written in an elegant cursive font; even the free chocolates at the reception desk were over the top, as - rather than having their name slapped onto the paper packaging of a small square - the bowl held brands such as Lindt, Ferrero Rocher and Thornton's.

"And this is only the entrance..." Ginny muttered beside me. "Do you know what, Harry?"

"What?"

"You can surprise me more often."

I glanced at her, only to see her half-laughing. We went to the desk, where the receptionist was sitting.

"Name and time? This is a reservation only basis."

"It'll be under Harry Potter. For 7 o'clock."

The man searched it up, nodding as he found the name and time to be correct. "Thank you, Mr Potter. A table for two, correct?"

"Yeah- I mean, correct. Thank you."

"Certainly. A member of staff will be with you shortly, to escort you to your table."

"Thank you."

He simply nodded and said nothing more, so Ginny and I took it as a cue to let the next people be served/checked in.

Once we had been seated and placed our order, Ginny looked around the dining room (which was even more detailed and over the top than the foyer), before looking back at me.

"This place is amazing. How did you get bookings?"

"I am a man of many talents."

She looked at me, eyebrows raised in a "seriously?" kind of expression.

"Okay, I've had it planned for a while and was placed on the waiting list for bookings."

"How long have you had it planned for exactly?" Ginny asked curiously.

I mumbled a reply.

"Pardon?"

"I said four months."

For some reason, this caused her to whack me on the arm.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"Harry Potter, are you telling me that you went and booked a reservation at a restaurant that is so long it has a four-month long waiting list? What on earth made you do it?"

"You just hit me because I tried to make a romantic gesture?" I asked.

"That's beside the point. Harry, how did you manage to hide this for four months?"

"Hang on, you just hit me because I tried to make a romantic gesture!"

"I'm sorry! Really, I am. I was just surprised. Four months is a long time."

"I know. There was several times where I almost slipped up." I admitted.

"Well, thank you. This is a truly amazing surprise."

"I just wanted to show that I love you."

Ginny raised an eyebrow, before placing a hand on her stomach.
"I think this little child proves that you've shown that you love me."

"What can I say? That's one of the enjoyable ways to show you I love you." I winked, and she grinned.

"I think I can agree on that."

Dinner arrived shortly after that.

The food itself was beyond delicious. Compared to the courses there, the Hogwarts feasts were like mountains of rotten bin food.

It was better than even Molly's cooking... not that I would ever dare say that to her face.

On the walk home, we were swinging our arms back and forth, fingers intertwined, with Ginny asked me a question that has evidently been on her mind.

"So why did you go to all of this effort? I mean it was brilliant and lovely and everything. I'm just curious as to why."

"Because I love you, you love me, and recently I've noticed that you've been slightly stressed. James and Albus are a handful, I know, but you have to deal with some of their nonsense more than I do because you work from home. I thought it would be nice to have a bit of a break, and have a bit of "us" time." I explained.

For that, I earned a kiss.

"Thank you."

"You're more than welcome, Gin."

This chapter is dedicated to you.

Seriously, there are so many mistakes throughout this "series" that I am amazed that anyone could last this long.

The term is coming to a close, so I'll be on Summer break next week (yay). Which means that there will potentially be more updates.

-Alice. Xoxox