Ideal

PROLOGUE

FAMILY AND FRIENDS

~~~

Sometimes Harry Potter wished he were an only child. Sometimes he wished he had something special that would engender respect and awe from at least a portion of the population.

And then he got over it about two seconds later when he realized that he was lucky as hell to have all he had as it was and he shouldn't start asking for more.

He had two parents, Lily and James, who loved him, his brother, two sisters, and each other with all their hearts. Lily and James had gotten together in their seventh year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and had enjoyed the sickeningly-sweet kind of love ever since, even through all the hardships and horrors they had faced, both together and apart.

He had a brother, Michael, who idolized his big brother, Harry, and was pretty cool, even by sibling-standards. Harry was teaching Michael about Quidditch, a wizard sport, but, as there was just the two of them, it was hard to do much other than play catch while hovering fifty feet in the air. Michael was going to be starting his fourth year at Hogwarts in September and was hoping and praying that he would make the school Quidditch team.

Harry also had two baby sisters, Sydney and Nadya, twins who were--literally--psychically linked and due to start Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry on September the first. Even though they were annoying and too girly for Harry's liking, he loved them with all his heart and was fiercely protective of the 'brats' as he called them.

Not to mention his godfather, Sirius Black, who had given Harry a flying motorcycle for his sixteenth birthday and was always teaching him new pranks for school. Sirius was James' best friend, had been best man at James and Lily's wedding, and was more like a big brother to Harry than anything else.

Also, Harry had a best friend named Ron Weasley, the youngest boy in a family with five boys and one girl. Ron was the best friend anyone could ask for, even if he was a bit thick some times. Or, a lot of the time, really.

And, last but definitely not least, Harry's girlfriend of almost a year and best friend of over six, Hermione Granger, a Muggle-born witch who was at the top of their class and who was the most passionate and loving person in the world. Harry missed her terribly because she, her parents, and her younger brother, Josh, had gone to Hawaii for July and their schedules hadn't meshed since her return so all he had had in the way of communication with her since end of term was a few letters and a couple brief phone calls.

Harry was thrilled, however, because in a little while he would be heading over to see Hermione. Albeit to pick up her cat, Crookshanks, so he could watch the occasionally menacing kitty, but it would be the first time he had seen Hermione in over a month--other than a few pictures she had sent him and the film strips in his mind that had been getting more and more pornographic of late. He understood why Hermione wanted to wait until she was ready before they had sex, but that didn't stop his imagination from torturing him with images of what his very flexible girlfriend might be capable of. Sometimes he wished he didn't know she used gymnastics and yoga to stay in shape.

In a vain attempt to distract himself before going to see Hermione, Harry had taken out his broomstick servicing kit that she had given him for his thirteenth birthday and had grabbed his Firebolt 600 from the broom cupboard. The Firebolt 600 had just come out and Harry had received one for his eighteenth birthday, which meant that his Nimbus 2000 was unnecessary. Harry had learned to fly on that broom, and was reluctant to give it away, but had finally given it to Michael who had been flying an old Cleansweep 7 that had been given to him when he was first trying to fly but couldn't handle anything more powerful. A few years before Harry had wanted a Firebolt, but his Nimbus 2000 had never failed him, not once, and spending his pocket money didn't hold much appeal to him. He and Ron had decided midway through their first year that they would get a place together after graduation, both eager to get away from their families, though reluctant to leave the safety and certainty of home as well. Not that either one would actually admit that.

After checking the time, Harry pushed back from his desk where he had been methodically been polishing his Firebolt 600, though it didn't actually need polishing, and he grabbed his coat from the back of his chair. "Mum, I'm gonna go pick up Crookshanks from Hermione now," He called as he felt around in his pockets for the keys to the family car.

When Harry was a year old a powerful, evil wizard, Lord Voldemort, had attacked the Potter residence. Lily had taken Harry upstairs while James fought what seemed to be a hopeless battle. But Lily managed to get a message to the other members of the Order of the Phoenix and James had lived, though, due to a spinal cord injury, his career as an Auror was over for good. He had been moved to Muggle Relations, and was recently promoted to head of the department. This role and his injury made the long-standing argument between James and Lily over whether to bring their children up in a purely magical world or a world mixed with magical and Muggle things moot. James could no longer Apparate or use the Floo network, nor could he fly his broomstick--a devastating blow to the former Quidditch captain and world-class Seeker for his school team--and, even though he knew he could have gotten away with it, he didn't want to risk enchanting his wheelchair to do anything other than what it was made to do. His good friend, Arthur Weasley--Ron's father--was the head of the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts office and tended to look the other way for his friends at times, though not all that often, and James didn't want to put Arthur in an awkward position, so he had learned how to drive a car. Lily, who was Muggle-born, was thoroughly pleased that she had won the argument, though she wished her husband hadn't had to be so irrevocably injured for her win to come to pass.

Of course, James fell in love with driving, and started Muggle-fying--as Michael called it--the house. The television and telephone were welcome additions to the mainly magical household, but no one could understand the logic behind James' purchase of a Muggle washing machine. Their magical one worked at least ten times faster and was much better for the environment.

"All right, dear," Lily called. "When will you be back?"

"I dunno," Harry replied as he found the keys and gave them a celebratory toss before replacing them in his pocket.

"Well, call if you're going to miss dinner. And don't forget to drop Sydney and Nadya's skates off at the rink--your father forgot them in the foyer this morning," Lily grumbled.

"Got 'em, mum," Harry said, making note of the two sparkly duffel bags, one Barbie pink and the other highlighter yellow, that were sitting by the front door.

"Say hello to her Hermione for me," Lily said as she came into the front room where Harry was stuffing his feet into his very large boots.

Harry smiled. "I will. And thanks again for letting Crookshanks stay here 'til the end of break. Mr. Granger said 'Mione'd have to get rid of him if she couldn't find a place for him to stay while Nana Granger stays with them."

"That seems a bit extreme," Lily commented as she braced herself against the doorjamb.

"Apparently that's Nana Granger," Harry smirked. "The twins made sure their little friends are locked away?" he said, asking after Sydney and Nadya's pet rabbits, Mai-Tai and Tango.

"Yes. They weren't too happy about it, but they're both in their cages in the girls rooms," Lily said. "Now go, before Hermione's grandmother arrives and finds the cat."

Harry grinned, planted a kiss on his mother's cheek, and headed out the door with his sister's bags in tow.

~~~

Ron Weasley sighed heavily and wished, not for the first time that day, that he hadn't agreed to help his brother, Fred and George, with the factory. He had been led to believe that there was just a tiny malfunction with the charm that was keeping the machines working.

He should have known better.

The factory where Fred and George produced Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes had been broken into and the entire shipment that was prepared to go out to their stores in preparation for the beginning of the school year and, soon after, Halloween, had been stolen. The break-in put them at least three months behind and they had less than three weeks to make up for their losses.

"Hey, Ron, you think Hermione'd be free to help with this?" George called across the large warehouse.

"Her dad's mum's comin' to visit today," Ron called back as he finished his letter and sealed it. "I need to borrow Chuckles," he called, heading to where the twins' own, Chuckles, usually resided.

"Sending a love letter, Ronnikins?" Fred teased from behind Ron, making the younger Weasley jump.

"To a certain Miss Brown?" George put in, falling into step beside his twin.

Ron shot them both a glare that rivalled Hermione's 'why aren't you studying?' glare, and then tied his letter to Chuckle's leg and told him to deliver the letter to Lavender Brown. The brown barn owl flew off and Ron turned back to face his brothers.

"Don't think I don't know about you and Katie having your long-distance... thing, Fred. Or that Angelina's practically living with you, George. And mum knows about Lavender 'n me. She doesn't know about your girlfriends, though, does she?" he asked innocently, loving that, for maybe the third time in his life, he had something to hold over his brothers heads.

He walked away feeling quite good about himself, though he knew the feeling wouldn't last long.

~~~

The drive took him about an hour, though Harry hadn't rushed and had stopped to drop off his sister's skates on the way. He spotted a florist a few blocks from Hermione's house and he stopped to pick up two bouquets. A dozen peach coloured roses for Mrs. Granger, and a dozen white Stargazer Lilies for Hermione.

When he got to the Granger residence Hermione was sitting on the grass in the front yard with her bow-legged ginger cat. Grabbing the flowers, Harry got out of the car and headed in a beeline for his girlfriend who was oblivious to his presence.

Kneeling behind her and reaching around her slim form, Harry held the lilies up in front of Hermione's face. "I know how much you love them," he whispered in her ear before dropping a kiss on her tanned shoulder.

"Mmm, they're beautiful," Hermione purred, tilting her head to the side to give Harry better access. "You're early, you know."

"Do you want me to leave?" Harry asked, lightly nuzzling the delicate hollow behind her ear.

"Never, love. Never," Hermione whispered, turning around in his embrace and wrapping her arms around his neck. "I missed you," she said, holding him for all she was worth.

"I missed you, too. God, 'Mione, I hate being away from you."

"I hate it too, but I don't know when I'll get to go on another trip with my parents. And I hardly see Josh because of school... but that'll change this year," Hermione grinned.

"You mean it's official?" Harry asked as he pulled back enough to look into her honey-brown eyes that never lied to him.

Hermione nodded. "The letter came this morning. Fawkes delivered it himself. Josh is starting Hogwarts in September with your sisters."

For the past few months Hermione's brother had been displaying signs that he might have magical powers like his sister. Hermione had been thrilled because it meant something else that they could share, hopefully bringing them closer together and mending the rift that had developed between them during her years at Hogwarts.

"Is he home?" Harry asked, wanting to congratulate Josh and have a chat with him.

"No. He went with dad to pick Nana up from the airport," Hermione said. She frowned. "Who are the roses for?"

"Your mum," Harry said sheepishly. He knew that the Grangers accepted that he was dating Hermione, and that they liked him well enough, but any chance to get a little higher in their books was welcome for Harry.

"Aww, that's so sweet of you," Hermione cooed. "C'mon, she's inside."

Harry twined his fingers with hers and they went inside, leaving Crookshanks outside to chase a butterfly that was flapping around the garden. "So, are we going to get to spend any time together now that you're back from Hawaii, or am I going to spend the rest of the summer helping Mike with his Quidditch moves?"

"Oh, please, as if you wouldn't love to fly around for the rest of the summer," Hermione laughed. "And, yes, once Nana gets settled in, you and I can spend time together. And when we get back to school... I'm Head Girl, you know... I have all that room all to myself," she said softly, smiling seductively.

"Tease," Harry growled softly, his animal form coming out in him for a moment. Harry, Ron, and Hermione--like James, Sirius, and Remus Lupin before them--were illegal animagus'. Ron turned into a sleek red fox, Hermione into a small panda bear, and Harry could turn into a Bengal tiger at will. They started training in their third year when Peter Pettegrew had escaped from Azkaban prison and rejoined the few Death Eaters that remained at large. They had perfected the art in their fifth year, Harry in October, Hermione in February, and Ron in Late May. Ever since they began their training, certain traits of their individual animals had bled into their everyday lives and actions.

"And I might get lonely," Hermione continued, turning to press her body into his, "what with all that space... and it'll be so dark in there... I might get scared."

"Then be sure to have a nightlight handy, dear," Mrs. Amelia Granger said as she came into the room carrying a pile of sheets and bed linins that came up well above her eyes.

Hermione blushed fiercely and backed away from Harry reluctantly.

"Hello, Mrs Granger. Do you need any help with that?" Harry asked politely as he handed the roses to Hermione.

"Oh, thank you, Harry," Amelia said as she passed the linins to Harry. "You could be a dear and just take them into the spare bedroom down the hall? Hermione can make up the room later."

Harry did as he was asked and also quickly made up the bed--magically--to save Hermione some time later. When he was done he found Hermione and her mother in the kitchen arranging the flowers into crystal vases. "Thank you for the flowers, Harry. They're beautiful," Amelia said with a warm smile.

Harry was about to respond but the phone rang and Amelia went off to answer it, leaving the teens to their own devices.

"So... I've got some time to kill before Nana arrives. Wanna keep me occupied?" Hermione asked innocently as she moved toward him from the safe distance they had maintained while her mother was in the room.

"Hmm... let me think..." Harry deadpanned. Hermione swatted at him and pouted and Harry pulled her into his arms and kissed her thoroughly.

~~~

Lavender Brown was sitting at a table outside Florean Fortescue's Ice-Cream Parlour, idly swirling her spoon in her cappuccino--Fortescue had recently discovered the joys of a Muggle mainstay--Starbucks--and was eager to have witches and wizards test out his latest creations.

"Okay, spill," Parvati Patil, Lavender's best friend, said, sitting down with her own Fortescue creation, a double chocolate milkshake made from chocolate ice cream, melted chocolate frogs, and with assorted candies throughout the dark mixture. "You're depressing me, and I've got a double chocolate delight in front of me. Depression with one of these babies is almost unheard of. So spill. What's with the morose?"

"It's nothing," Lavender said. "I just..."

"Haven't heard from Ron in a while?" Parvati said, more as a statement than a question. "He's probably busy. Something to do with his brother's factory. It was in the Daily Prophet the other day."

"That's not what's bothering me. I got a letter from Ron yesterday," Lavender said. "He's working with Fred and George 'cause their factory got broken into."

"Then what's wrong?" Parvati asked, growing more concerned for her friend by the second.

"Just... stuff," Lavender said evasively.

"Oh. Stuff. Right. That clears everything up," Parvati said sarcastically, rolling her eyes and dropping the subject for the moment, though not giving up on finding out what was wrong with her best friend.

After taking a large sip of her milkshake, Parvati spoke again, changing the subject in hopes of cheering Lavender up a little. "So, are you looking forward to start of term?" she asked.

"I guess," Lavender said listlessly.

"Ugg! I give up!" Parvati said, getting up and heading toward Flourish and Blotts and muttering to herself in frustration.

~~~

"Ginny, dear, can you stir the stew?" Mrs. Weasley called from one of the upper levels to the house.

"Already doing it, mum," Ginny replied. She lowered the temperature on the stove and then left the kitchen and headed back to her books. She still had a few weeks before start of term, but she also still had essays from History of Magic, Transfiguration, and Potions. She had already finished her DADA essay, as well as everything she had to do for Muggle Studies and Charms. Why she had left her more challenging and taxing subjects for last was something that Ginny couldn't quite remember her logic on.

"Ginny, I need you to de-gnome the garden for me," Mrs. Weasley called down the stairs.

"Alright, mum," Ginny called back, hoping her mother didn't catch the reluctance in her voice.

It was going to be a long few weeks.

~~~