Now And Forever
Chapter 28
By Abraxan
Author Notes:
Many thanks to my brilliant Brit-picker, Kelpie, and my fabulous betas, Alexander, Asad, Iris and Rich! Thanks too to Mark Anders Harrison for help with a Latin incantation, and Mike McKean for his help with a sports question!
NOW AVAILABLE!!! "Star Sons 1 - Dawn of the Two" an original fantasy novel by Abraxan (Lynda Sappington)! Go to Amazon or Barnes & Noble to order! If you want an autographed bookplate, send a business-sized SASE to:
Whimsy Hill Publishing,
15401 Eaton Pike,
West Alexandria OH 45381.
"We’re inside the airport. This is the building that was downhill from us when we arrived. If I’ve timed this right," he looked at his watch,
"and I think I have, the flight from England should be arriving just now. We’ll join the crowd when they enter so we won’t be noticed, and then we’ll begin our honeymoon like
Muggles. And by the way, we’ll be acting like Muggles while we’re here—well, when we’re where people can see us, anyway."
"Why? And why’d you pick Maui? Surely there are beautiful places closer to England that are warm this time of year."
He grinned. "I’ve been here four times before, the first time with Merlin, and the other times on my own. I’ve walked the beach, the streets, the shops, the hotel lobbies. Not once
was I recognized. We’ll have privacy here we wouldn’t have closer to England. Merlin says the magical population here is small and they seem to keep to themselves. I haven’t run
across any of them on my trips here. Can you imagine it? No fangirls, no bloody paparazzi, nobody watching or bothering us. Privacy!"
She laughed, her face bright with excitement. "Harry, you’re a genius!"
He preened a bit. "Nice of you to notice." When he heard the sound of a plane landing, Harry glanced at his watch, then led Ginny to a set of windows that looked out on the runway.
"Right on time."
"Why didn’t we come by plane, if that’s how you wanted us to enter the country?"
He held up three fingers. Folding the first down, he said, "If we’d flown out of England, someone would have worked out where we were going." He folded the second finger. "We
would’ve been stuck on a plane at the mercy of whoever recognized us, and would’ve been forced to listen to crying babies and to sit in what I’ve heard are uncomfortable seats for
hours and hours." The third finger joined the others. "And this way, we have more days to honeymoon."
"Sounds good to me!"
"I thought you’d agree." Harry pulled out the Invisibility Cloak. "We’ll wait for them to get through Customs and then join them." They found a spot against the
wall and waited.
When the plane’s passengers emerged from the doorway into the building, they queued up in front of several desks where people in some kind of uniform waited for them.
"What’s going on?" Ginny whispered.
"They’re going through Customs," Harry replied quietly. "They have to say if they’re carrying any food or other stuff they won’t allow on the islands from
outside."
"The wedding cake and sandwiches Mum packed for us!" Ginny gasped as she watched some passenger’s apple being thrown away.
"I fully intend to eat those, which is why we Apparated to this side of the Customs counter."
"Why won’t they let you bring food in?"
"I don’t really know. If we eat our food quickly enough, there should be no danger to Hawaii from our sandwiches and wedding cake, right?" He gave her a crooked grin and was
delighted when she laughed.
"What are they doing to those little books?" Ginny asked, watching as a Customs officer banged something on each passenger’s book before handing it back.
"They’re putting entry stamps on passports. Don’t worry, ours are already done."
"How?"
"Auror training. We learned how to create authentic documents this term. I used what I learned to create passports and driver’s licences for both of us."
"But Harry, you already have a licence! And I can’t drive!"
"I had to age us a bit so we could rent a car. You’re 25, I’m 26." He could see she was still confused. "Just trust me, OK? They’ll be walking by soon, so we need
to be ready to join the crowd."
Still under the Invisibility Cloak, they followed a group of passengers, removing the Cloak and joining the crowd when they surged toward the baggage area.
"What happens in there?" Ginny whispered as Harry led her past the door most of the passengers were entering.
"That’s where people get their bags that were stored in the bottom of the plane," Harry explained. "See the people ahead of us? They only have small bags, like we do, so they
didn’t need to go in there either."
She shook her head, a look of wonder on her face. "How did you learn all this?"
"Some I learned on the telly when I was growing up at the Dursleys, some from books, some from travel agents I spoke with, some from Auror training, and some from just hanging around here while
planning this trip."
"When did you have time to do this, with everything else you’re doing?"
"Remember all those sleepless nights I’ve had? I spent some getting Dobby started on the pool, some on that house design spell and some working on this. And I did some of the research
during lunch, as well."
"You amaze me."
He wrapped an arm around her and gave her a brief hug. "The feeling’s mutual."
Now they were approaching a counter in front of a wall covered with pictures of cars. "Just go along with what I say, OK?" he murmured as the attendant glanced up at them. Ginny
nodded.
"Aloha! Welcome to Maui," the clerk said with a broad smile. "How may I help you?"
"Aloha! I have a car booked. The name’s Potter." Harry pushed his passport and driver’s licence across the counter to the man.
"Oh, yes, Mr. Potter! You reserved a very specific car, didn’t you?" The man reached for some paperwork. "Everything’s ready, just as you requested."
"Thanks."
A few minutes later, Harry and Ginny were seated in a bright red Mustang convertible, trying to sort out how to make the top go down. Ginny was just as delighted with the car as Harry had imagined
she’d be. A red convertible sports car was an obvious choice, but a Mustang—he knew she’d like the horse-related name, and it really was an attractive car. He just hoped he’d
be able to remember which side of the road to drive on, since he’d driven so little, and all of that in England. He’d already made the mistake of opening the left-hand door for Ginny.
She’d turned a quizzical look on him when she saw the steering wheel in front of the seat.
"In addition to being eight years older, now I’m supposed to know how to drive?"
Harry shrugged and laughed, then led her to the right-hand door and helped her into the car before getting in on the left himself.
Ginny had her wand out to put the top down magically. Before she could try, an attendant walked up to the car. She hid her wand just before the man leaned down to talk to Harry.
"Problem, sir?"
"How do you put the top down? And you’d better show us how to put it back up again, too," Harry said.
Before long, the top was down and they were on their way, Harry driving carefully at first, then finally relaxing after a few minutes. He glanced at Ginny, who was plaiting her hair so it
wouldn’t tangle in the wind. She was having a hard time of it, since she was trying to do it without magic.
Harry glanced in the rear-view mirror, and then at the traffic around them. Nobody was close enough to see anything. "Want some help?"
"I can do it, it’s just—"
Harry reached across the car to touch her shoulder, then tucked some hair behind her ear, and then gathered the length of her hair in his hand and stroked down the length of it. When he took his hand
away, her hair was neatly plaited. He rested his hand on her shoulder, as if that had been his intention all along.
She turned her head and kissed his hand. "Thanks. That’s much better." She leaned her head back against the headrest, basking in the sunshine. "It’s so nice here! Warm
but not too warm, and the scenery is gorgeous!"
"Not as gorgeous as you."
"You’re such a charmer."
Harry flashed her a grin. "I’ve barely begun to charm you, wife."
"Wife. I love that."
"Me too."
* * * * *
They pulled up to a huge white building with beautiful landscaping. Two men approached their car, opening the car doors before Ginny or Harry had a chance to.
"Checking in, sir?" one of the men asked.
"Yes."
The other man had lifted Harry and Ginny’s backpacks from the back seat and put them on a gold-coloured wheeled cart. "Is there more luggage in the trunk?"
"The trunk?" Harry said in confusion. When the man pointed at the back of the car, he laughed. "Oh, we call that the boot. No, this is all our luggage."
Harry was a bit startled by their bags being taken from the car like that. He thought he’d researched the hotels fairly well, but he hadn’t driven to any of them, nor brought any luggage,
since his previous visits had lasted only a few hours at most. He’d done his research, though, so he dug into his pocket and pulled out some money to tip the men for their service. He looked at
the one dollar bill in his hand, looked up at the smart hotel they were about to stay in, and decided five dollars would be a more appropriate tip.
A bit startled to see their little red car being driven away, Harry blew out a nervous breath. He could do this! He’d seen enough films on the telly showing how people did things in hotels that
he thought he could manage. He hoped he could, anyway.
"Erm—how do we get the car back when we want it?" he asked the man with the luggage cart.
"Just call the number on the ticket they gave you when you want the car. They should have it waiting for you when you get to the lobby."
"Great. Thanks."
He took Ginny’s hand and followed the man to the front desk, where he knew he’d have to check in. He pulled out the credit card he’d used to buy lunch once simply to learn how to
use the card, and slid it across the desk when the clerk asked for it. Soon they were signed in and Harry held a small envelope with two plastic credit card-looking things in it. These must be our
keys. They shouldn’t be too hard to use.
"Mr. and Mrs. Potter?" a beautiful Hawaiian girl in native attire said. She held garlands of flowers on her arm.
"Yes," Harry replied.
"Aloha. Welcome to Maui," the young woman said as she draped a flower lei around Ginny’s neck. She repeated the action with Harry.
"Thank you!" Ginny said, admiring the beautiful plumeria blooms in the lei.
"Yes, thanks," Harry added. He pressed a bill in the woman’s hand as they followed their baggage cart to the elevator.
"Harry," Ginny hissed, "if you keep giving away money, we won’t have any left!"
"Tips are a large part of how these people make their living, sometimes the only pay they get," he explained. "I’m not certain how much to tip for this kind of stuff. She
looked pleased but not shocked, so I guess I paid her enough."
"Do they give flowers to all the guests?" Ginny said, looking at the other tourists in the lobby, few of whom wore leis.
"No. It’s a special greeting service. I booked it."
She gently touched a blossom on the plumeria lei and smiled. "I’m glad you did."
When the man showed them their room, he put their backpacks on racks in the closet, then showed them the various features of the room. Harry figured this service was worth a bit more, so he gave him
a ten dollar bill. He put the "privacy" sign on the outside of the door and locked all the locks on the door before turning back to Ginny.
"Come here," he said, holding out his hand in invitation. Ginny moved toward him and he swept her up in his arms, then carried her back into the room. "I was supposed to carry you
over the threshold, but I thought it would be better to do this in private." He laid her on the bed and bent over her, kissing her gently. "Hello, Mrs. Potter. Are you enjoying your
honeymoon so far?"
"Oh yes! And I’ll enjoy it more when you get down here with me!" She pulled on the front of his shirt hard enough to unbalance him. She scooted over just in time to avoid him
falling on top of her.
Harry rolled onto his side, got up on his elbow and gazed down at her. "So that’s how it’s going to be, eh?" A smile tickled his lips. "You’re going to bully
me?"
She giggled. "When necessary, yes. And right now, it seems necessary!"
"Do I need to remind you that just a short time ago, you were complaining about your feet hurting and that you were tired?"
She tapped her chin with one finger, apparently digging through her memories and coming up short. "When was that?"
"At our wedding reception just over an hour ago. Our body clocks think it’s the middle of the night. Do you want to sleep?"
"Not yet."
He bent over her, stopping with his lips barely brushing hers. "Good answer."
* * * * *
Harry woke up to the sound of music drifting in through the partly-opened balcony door. He lay there with his arms around Ginny, who was snuggled up against his side,
her head comfortably nestled in the hollow of his shoulder. They were finally married officially, so the world knew they belonged to each other! Nobody could tell them they couldn’t kiss
wherever and whenever they wanted, not anymore.
Ginny stirred slightly in her sleep. He ran his hand lightly over her shoulder and arm, soothing her back into a deeper sleep. He smiled when she murmured his name and slid her arm across his chest,
giving him a little hug before her arm fell lax as her sleep deepened once more. Did anything feel better than this wonderful sense of peace, joy and fulfillment? Harry didn’t think so.
The words of the song playing outside drifted up to him, capturing his attention. He listened more closely.
I watch her lyin' in bed asleep
And I thank my lucky stars
For every second she's here with me
I wanna hold her in my arms
She is my day
She is my night
She is the breath that gives me life
Harry smiled. That song could’ve been written about us! He turned his head so he could see his wife’s face softly lit by the light coming through the patio doors from the full moon now
riding low in the sky. It’s all true. She is my day and my night. She’s my reason for living. I didn’t think I could love her any more than I did, but somehow, now I do. Harry
thought his heart would burst, it was so overwhelmed with his love for Ginny.
The music caught his attention again.
Sometimes we laugh, sometimes we cry
Sometimes we fight and we don't know why
But no matter what she believes in me
She's the closest thing to Heaven
I'll ever need
She'll always be an angel in my eyes
Sometimes I feel her by my side
Like she's watching over me
I get a chill runnin' down my spine
And that's all the proof I need
That she fills my heart
She fills my soul
She is the half that makes me whole*
Harry was amazed. That songwriter, whoever he was, had captured the way Harry felt about Ginny perfectly. It was as if he’d read Harry’s mind.
As the singer repeated the chorus, Harry held one hand up toward the slightly-opened glass door and cast a wandless spell. A moment later, a small crystal sphere floated from the doorway across the
room, landing gently on the table by the bed. Beautiful colors swirled inside, a visual representation of the lovely song Harry had heard. When Ginny woke up, she would have a wonderful surprise
waiting for her, one of many Harry planned to give her throughout their lives together.
With a sigh of contentment, Harry rested his cheek against Ginny’s bright coppery hair and closed his eyes, a happy man indeed.
Author Notes:
* - Lyrics to "Angel In My Eyes" by John Michael Montgomery