The second ceremony.
The rather small reception they held in the Granger front garden was going well, the sun was bright. A few small fluffy clouds drifted across the blue sky, and the guests both Muggle and magical were enjoying themselves mingling together with out problems, though Tonks did manage to trip and land with her face in Remus's lap, causing the marauder to gasp and wince in pain before a huge blush of a rather deep shade of crimson crept up his face.
Luna was talking to Ginny about some strange unknown magical beast when Hermione joined the two girls and offered them some refreshment.
"You know, I really am confused," Luna said to Ginny, as Hermione filled their glasses with some fruit punch.
"And just what is it that has you confused then Luna?" Ginny asked smiling at her rather odd friend.
"Well, like I said before, I am really deeply in love with Harry, yet all the stories I have read seem to tell me I should therefore hate the girl who gets to marry him, unless it is me of course, but I don't, I still love Hermione as a friend, but still feel a little jealous, so now I'm confused," Luna replied seeming to pick her words carefully.
"I know just what you mean, but maybe we can't hate Hermione because we know she makes Harry happy like no one else could. I know his happiness means more to me than my own happiness ever could," Ginny said hugging Luna tightly.
"Yes I think you're right Ginny, Harry's happy now he is with Hermione," Luna almost whispered.
"Hey you two, I'm still here you know," Hermione chuckled at her friends conversation.
"And why is that, shouldn't you be some where secluded with your husband?" Luna said with an uncharacteristic giggle.
"Luna Lovegood! What ever is going through your mind?" Ginny asked laughing.
"Well if I had married that green eyed hunk, I would be in a quiet bedroom right about now," Luna said with yet another giggle.
"Luna!" Hermione exclaimed her face turning red.
"Well it's true," Luna said with a smile and a dreamy look that was different to her usual dreamy look.
"Where's that husband of yours?" Mrs Granger asked joining the girls and bringing their talk to an end.
"I don't know mum, last I saw of him he was talking with dad, it looked like they were heading around to the back garden," Hermione replied getting a starry look in her eye, that was the second time in just as many minutes that someone had said 'your husband' it gave Hermione a warm feeling in the pit of her stomach.
"Well could you go and find them dear, it's time to cut the cake," Mrs Granger said as she turned to walk away.
"Gotta go girls, see you in a minute or two ok," Hermione said as she set off toward the back garden to find her husband and her father.
"Harry James Potter, you get my father down here right now," Hermione shouted as she came to a stop having rounded the corner to the back of the house and seen her father on the firebolt broomstick riding behind Harry.
Harry and her father were both roaring with laughter when they landed in the middle of the lawn,
"By heck Harry that was absolutely bloody marvellous," Mr Granger said as he climbed breathlessly from Harry's broom.
"Language dad," Hermione admonished while trying hard to suppress a laugh.
"Well it was," declared Mr Granger innocently, pouting like a small boy caught pinching cookies.
"We didn't go high love, what with the wards…" Harry said looking like he wanted to burst out laughing again.
"Men!" Hermione declared no longer able to hide her grin. "Come on Harry love we have to cut the cake,"
Mr Granger took off for the front garden and left the two newly weds to walk around together.
"I can think of much better things to do than cut a cake now that we are married," Harry chuckled a very mischievous look in his eye.
"Harry, you know we can't do anything like that until after we have done everything else," Hermione said laughing at the puppy dog look Harry gave her before adding his lopsided smile that he reserved just for her.
At three thirty Hermione looked around at the few guests that still remained in the garden, they were the people who were to accompany them to Hogwarts for the next ceremony. They would be leaving in three groups using port keys supplied by Sirius.
Remus, Tonks, Katie, Alicia, and Angelina were the first to leave, quickly followed by Sirius, Mr and Mrs Granger, Neville, and Colin, next, all the Weasley family except Ginny, who was with Harry, Hermione, Luna and Dobby.
Everyone arrived safely at Hogwarts, landing just outside the main entrance, where professor McGonagall, professor Flitwick, Dobby's uncle, and several of the Hogwarts house elves were waiting patiently for them. The rather grumpy and wrinkled looking eldest elf bid them all to stand in a large pre-marked circle, Harry and Hermione stood in the middle with the old elf, they in turn were encircled by elves, who were then encircled by everyone else. The old elf asked the young couple to hold hands, telling them they were not to let go for any reason, "Is this dangerous?" Harry asked looking worriedly at his new wife.
The old elf chuckled in a deep voice "Only if you's let go master."
The elves around them lifted their hands and with their elfin magic they created a magical dome over Hermione and Harry. Then the magic of the witches and wizards around them suddenly began to form an outer dome with out help from their wands.
Harry and Hermione stood face to face in the centre of the domes of magic and interlocked their fingers, neither wanted to ever let go of the other ever again, after a quick gentle kiss the young witch and wizard stared into each others eyes as the old elf began to chant, over and over he repeated the mixed words of the ancient Elvin language and the modern English,
"Máhan Carilwë maquet for the yára nútë et vérë sina ender his indis join heart with heart the istar et curuni aqua et illumë fëa with fëa sanwë-latya thus maruva illumë Amen"
Slowly a gentle warming wind gathered around the feet of the married couple getting stronger as it began to whirl and rise around them, there seemed no direction or sense to how the wind whirled about, Harry and Hermione hung on to each other as the circle of elves began to fade away to be replaced by a circle full of golden swirling light, slowly so very slowly they felt as though they were dissolving and melting into one single person, blending together into one single being, then again they heard the chanting of the old elf but this time they understood every word he was chanting.
"Supreme one we ask for the ancient bond of this bridegroom and his bride, join heart with heart the good wizard and good witch wholly and always, soul with soul direct, thus will it be always amen,"
on and on went the chant until they felt they were no longer two separate people at all, they were one body, one mind, one heart and one soul. For several seconds or maybe even several hours they revelled in the feeling of being one complete being full of total love, of being one with the love that held the universe together, and then slowly they began to separate back into two people then back into their true selves once more. Once again they could feel the warm wind as it swirled aimlessly around them, once again they felt the ground beneath their feet, then slowly the golden light faded to be replaced once again by the circle of elves. As the wind died and the light vanished completely, with their legs feeling very weak Hermione and Harry fell to the ground, their hands still together their fingers still entwined.
There was a rush of bodies as those around them rushed forward to see what was wrong, the only thing that they had seen was a slight wind blowing around the two Potters', only Hermione and Harry had seen or felt the amazing things that had happened to them.
The two very weak legged glowing teenagers were taken into the great hall, where the Hogwarts elves provided them with drinks to rebuild their strength.
In the centre of the main living room of Malfoy Manor, a large gathering of Death eaters stared at the terrifying sight that was happening right before their eyes, for the second time that day their powerful lord and master was writhing around the floor in screaming agony. Several times the dark lord had screamed out in pain then emptied the contents of his stomach on to the floor and was writhing around in the foul smelling vomit and bile, the Death Eaters looked on powerless as their powerful dark wizard lord was screaming out for help in his pain, but none of them knew what to do and so they just stared helplessly as he repeatedly screamed out in pain.
Over in a dark unnoticed corner of the room Severus Snape, professor, spy, and Death Eater, smiled, although it was a small smile it actually reached his eyes, it was the first time he had truly smiled at all since the Halloween night years before when Voldemort had murdered Lily Potter.
'I must thank that fame seeking brat Potter and his know it all girl friend' he thought as he enjoyed the sight before him, 'suffer you evil wretch' he thought as Voldemort screamed out with excruciating pain once again.
Hermione and Harry sat together in the great hall still holding hands as they were telling their friends and family what exactly had happened to them inside the dome, Sirius kept asking Harry if he was suffering any pain, having been asked three times Harry sat up straight.
"I'm not in any pain, but I know who is, Voldemort is in a great deal of pain, all that love we shared and felt has driven him almost insane with pain, I don't think he will ever be able to use his link with me again with out suffering just as I used to do," Harry said a huge grin on his face.
Hand in hand Harry and Hermione left the great hall, saying that they needed some fresh air, leaving their friends talking about what they had been told, they left the great hall turning left to walk outside on to the grounds, Harry led the way to the black lake,
"We should take a minute to talk," he said as they reached the waters edge, taking out his wand he waved it just once and conjured a nice blanket for them to sit on beneath their favourite tree.
"We should try to find out what happened to us, and exactly what it means," Hermione said as they sat side by side.
'Hermione love I really don't have a clue'Harry thought as he played back the memory of their fantastic journey into total love.
"Well at least the old elf was right about that," Hermione said quietly.
"Huh," Harry said looking at her oddly.
'Ok let's try it like this' Hermione chuckled as she watched his face break into a frown followed by a huge grin.
"I can hear your thoughts!" Harry exclaimed rather louder than he intended.
"Ok can you feel this?" Hermione asked as she pinched her self.
"No, nothing, anyway why would I feel you pinching your… Ouch!" Harry replied as she pinched her self again.
"So it was all true, we are bonded body, mind, heart, and soul," Hermione said in awe.
"Well I don't think the sharing pain bit is exactly handy," Harry laughed as he rubbed at his arm.
"We didn't share the pain Harry my love, you felt it for me, you never know when that might come in handy, that and it can help us to heal each other without having to be together," Hermione told him with a huge grin.
"How the heck did you do that then?" Harry asked eyes wide at the possibilities of remote healing.
'Just thought of you is all' she chuckled.
'Ok time to go and rejoin the others before I give in to this urge to kiss you senseless' Harry thought with a mischievous grin coming across his face.
Hermione got to her feet 'I told you we can't do anything like that until later, now behave yourself and come on' she caught hold of his hand and pulled him to his feet.
A very worried and shaken Lord Voldemort called Wormtail into the room where he sat on a huge throne like chair.
"Yes my lord," Wormtail stuttered as he bowed and scraped his way into the room.
"I want to know how Potter is doing these things, you will go and infiltrate Hogwarts and find out, now get from my sight," Voldemort hissed as he rubbed at his aching head.
"But master could Severus not enter the school easier and find out what the Potter boy is up to," Wormtail asked nervously.
"Fool! Do as you are told, Severus is on his break it would look to suspicious and obvious if he returned to the school now." Voldemort hissed pointing his wand at Wormtail and shouting crusio.
Wormtail lay screaming until Voldemort lifted the curse from him, he then crawled to the wall and used it to pull himself on to his feet, and then he backed slowly and shakily from the room, wondering as he did so how he was to find out what Harry Potter was doing, the school would be closed for the holiday for quite some time yet, then he grinned as he remembered that the all powerful Voldemort had been crying like a baby just a few short minutes ago, maybe it was time to change his allegiances once again if Potter was able to render Voldemort into a weeping wreck, then it seemed obvious to Wormtail that Harry was the stronger of the two wizards, the one who would end up winning in the end, leaving Malfoy Manor for Hogwarts was his best chance of getting out of all this alive.
He grinned again as he remembered how stupidly forgiving Potter was, if he had not been so forgiving Wormtail would be dead, killed by his former friends.
As the door slammed shut behind Wormtail Voldemort once more screamed out in pain.
Harry stopped as they reached the main door to the castle drew Hermione close and placed a rather hot and passionate kiss on his wife's inviting lips, "It's time to move on to the next part of your plan my brilliant and beautiful wife, and the sooner the better."