Until the very End - [Harry Potter xF!Oc]

2013

Once the press conference ended, Mel stepped out of the podium and quickly went behind the curtains fearing she'd pass out from pure anxiety.

Harry and the children were waiting there, and Harry was unable to kiss her when she arrived, his hands were full trying to keep their kids in one place.

"That was a great speech. I never doubted you'd do it perfectly," he told her, pulling James back before the boy could steal Matt's juice. "How do you feel?"

"Like I could fall to my knees and sob at any moment," Mel breathed out. "Can't believe it's official. I'm the Head of the Department of Mysteries, but I still feel like a child..."

"You look youthful, but I fear being thirty-three makes you a full-grown adult," Harry grinned. "Boys!" He pulled them apart once more. "Didn't you have something to say to your mum?"

"YES!" Nine-year-old James pushed his siblings aside and wrapped his arms around Mel. "I'm very proud of you mummy! Can I come to work with you?"

"Absolutely not," Mel ran a hand through his light-brown hair.

"Mummy," Matt handed his apple juice to Harry and approached her with his hands clasped anxiously. "I want to know—Will you take me to my piano lessons on the weekends? I don't like it when the Flints take me, their girls scream a lot."

Mel hid her amusement though Harry could still see it in her eyes. When she answered, she sounded serious. "Of course! My job won't interfere with our time together, I promise."

"Do you?" This time, it was Emmeline asking. "Daddy said that and now he's leaving with Uncle Ron—Why is he leaving? Rosie said she heard him tell Auntie 'Mione that it was a dangerous mission—"

Six-year-old Lily looked up at Harry with her huge brown eyes full of fear. "Is that true, daddy?"

"Lin," Harry frowned. "Rose shouldn't eavesdrop, and you shouldn't scare your siblings. It's nothing to worry about, I've been away for missions before, you just don't remember it because you were little."

Mel knelt before her children and forced out a reassuring smile. She knew about Harry's next mission, and she'd also heard it would be ugly. Nowadays, Harry didn't have to worry about encountering Death Eaters, but there were still bad people out there, and sometimes, it took the Head Auror to go and handle the problem himself.

"Your dad will be okay," she hugged the four little children. "Now could you please give mummy some love? She had a very stressful morning."

James jumped right in, almost throwing her back. Used to his son's antics, Harry steadied Mel to keep her from falling. Matt and Emmeline peppered Mel's face with kisses and Lily sneaked between James and her mother and held onto Mel's waist.

The Sultens arrived then, Regulus holding a bouquet of fresh hydrangeas for his sister. "Congrats!" He grinned. "You'll hire me after I finish school, right?"

Mel's children slipped out of her grip and jumped into Reg's arms, he barely had time to hand over the flowers to his mother so they wouldn't get destroyed. Mel hugged her mum and took the bouquet, then raised a brow at her brother. 

"Didn't you want to be a magizoologist?"

"He wants all the dangerous careers he can get his hands on," Emily nudged her side playfully. "Reminds me of a certain little girl I knew."

"Alright, you little blighters—give me some space!" The seventeen-year-old exclaimed, picking up Lily and loudly kissing her cheeks multiple times. "There! Share those with your siblings."

He placed the little redheaded girl on the ground and approached Mel, pulling her into a bear hug.

"That's my big sister! McLaggen must be dying of shame..."