Always

KAT

I was sitting on Harry’s couch at his house and my leg was shaking, bouncing up and down. Ron was sitting next to me, he looked over at me and placed a hand on my thigh to try and calm me.

“Why are you so nervous? It’s not like it is going to change anything”, Ron said to me.

“It’s going to change everything. I won’t be a Greene anymore”, I said nervously. I started to wring my hands together.

“It’s just a name. Besides, you’ve been a Weasley for years now”, Ron said, reaching for my hand to stop my nervous fidgeting. Ginny sat across from me just grinning and laughing at me. A moment later Harry and Bill walked in the room. We could have done the ceremony somewhere else, made it a fancy event, and had a lot of people over to witness it. I talked with Harry some and we decided to just keep it small. We would have Ginny and Ron there as witnesses and we would go over to Mum’s after for a nice dinner. I didn’t want to make it a big deal. Or I was trying not to, but truth be told, it was a big deal.

Magical adoptions were nothing like non-magical adoptions. By being magically adopted, not only did your name change, but so did your magical core. Your magic would forever recognize the magic of the other person. Magical adoptions were binding. Not many people chose to do a magical adoption because of that. I mostly didn’t want to make a big deal out of it because I didn’t want Mum or dad to be offended that I didn’t ask them. They had understood my reasoning behind wanting Harry to adopt me, but I still felt guilty.

“Are you both ready?”, Bill had asked us. Ron gave my hand a squeeze as I stood up and stood in front of Will, across from Harry. I smiled at Harry and nodded to Will to start.

“First, I would like to say it is in an honor to do this for you both. You both are my family, and I am very happy and honored to be here with you both. Katie, can you please take a hold of Harrys right wrist with your right hand. Harry can you please take a hold of Katie’s right wrist with your right hand”, Bill commanded us. I wiped my palm on my dress before grabbing a hold of his wrist.

“Family is not always those that we were born into, sometimes family finds us in a way of friendships. Sometimes friends make their way into our hearts and become the family we never had. When I look at you two, that is what I see. Anyone who has had the opportunity to witness your friendship would agree. I’ve seen you both go above and beyond for each other”, Bill said. Good lord he was going to make me cry.

“Harry, when Katie asked you if you could adopt her, not for a second did you hesitate. It was as if there had never been another option for you. Katie, I want you to know, you do not need to be nervous, my family can’t imagine anyone else adopting you. Besides one day you’ll both be married into the Weasley family anyway”, Bill added with a wink in Ron’s direction. I didn’t need to turn around to see the blush that found its way to his cheeks.

“I am going to perform the spell now; you will feel a warmth around your wrists and in your hands. The light will start off white. If the magic accepts the bond, the light will turn green, if the magic rejects the bond, the light will turn red. Have no fear, I do not believe that will happen”, Bill said. He held his hands over where arms were joined. He mumbled a spell under his breath, I didn’t catch the words. A moment later, a white light circled around where we were joined together. Bill did not say anymore words, but he still held his hands above us. One beat, two beats, three beats… the light was still white. I was just beginning to panic when the light suddenly turned green and went out. I let out the breath I was holding, and I heard everyone else let out a breath as well.

“See, I told you guys, nothing to worry about”, Bill laughed. “Katie, I believe you have something to give to Harry as a symbol of your adoption”, Bill prompted me. I cleared my throat and reached behind me. Ron held out a small package for me. I took it from him and turned back towards Harry.

“Harry, when I first decided that I no longer wanted to be a Greene, there was no one else that came to my mind to adopt me than you. The Weasley’s have always been my family, but so have you. Since that first day of school when we were eleven, we have been friends. You have been there through all of my highs and all of my lows. I will forever be glad that you allowed me to be a Potter”, I finished. I was trying really hard not to cry at this point. I handed him the small package and he opened it slowly. Inside was a gold coin that I had inscribed with the Potter family crest. On the back I engraved another image of the Potter family crest, except I added a small cat to the bottom right to symbolize myself. Harry held the coin and wiped at his face with his other hand. I reached for his hand and squeezed.

“This is… this truly special. Thank you”, Harry said.

“Harry, when you are ready, please present Katie with your gift to symbolize your adoption”, Will said. Harry turned to Ginny and grabbed a small square box from her.

“Katie, I didn’t know when the girl who sat down next to me at the dinner table when I was eleven would become one of my very best friends. I didn’t know that in you, I would find the family that I was missing, the family that I never had. It is no secret that my aunt and uncle were not nice to me growing up. Until you sat down next to me, I had barely known what kindness felt like. I also should probably thank you for introducing me to my fiancé’s family. I have never thought of you as anything but my sister, and I am glad today we can make that official'', Harry said, handing me the small box. Now I was definitely crying. I slowly opened the box. Inside sat a small tennis bracelet that was covered in sapphire stones. “I found it in my vault. It was my Mum’s, and I think she would be very happy that it now belongs to you”, he said with a sniffle as he helped me put it on. I couldn’t even form words at this point, so I just pulled him into a tight hug.

RON

“Ron, Ginny, if you guys will join us, please”, Bill asked me and my sister. I came up to Kat’s side and Ginny came up to Harrys. “Katie, Harry, if you will please join at the wrist like you were. Ron, please place your hand over Katies. Ginny, please place your hand over Harrys”, Bill instructed. Once we were all touching, Bill held his hands over where we were all joined.

“Do you Katie and do you Harry, accept this magical bond?”, Bill asked them.

“We do”, they both said at the same time.

“And do you, Ron and Ginny, acknowledge and accept this bond for Katherine and Harry?”

“We do”, we both said at the same time. The green light circled the four of us before going back out. We all stepped away from each other.

“So, that is that. All that is left is to sign some paperwork for the Ministry and for Katie to access your vault”, Bill said, clapping his hands. Bill showed us all where to sign and left the room. A moment later he came back with five shot glasses and some bourbon. “Before we leave, I thought we could toast to the new bond”, Bill said, pouring the drinks.

“To family. Both blood and magical”, Harry said.

“Cheers”, we all said, clinking our glasses together. We downed our drinks and handed them back to Will. Harry came over to Kat and pulled her into a tight hug.

“I’m glad we did this. You will always be my sister”, I heard Harry whisper to Kat.

“Always”, she replied, hugging him tighter. I was glad that Kat had Harry. They both have always had my family, but they bonded over their lack of parents. For Kat, while she had parents, they have always abandoned her and so she might as well not have had any. Unfortunately for Harry, his parents died when he was just a baby. He was sent to live with his aunt and uncle, but they treated him more like a house pest, than an actual child. So now they had each other, forever.