A/N: I realise Ginny talks like she's older than three in this first section, but just bear with me. This first scene is inspired by Wild One by Faith Hill. This story was written for the Daddy's Girl competition on HPFC. My father/daughter pair was Arthur and Ginny Weasley. Enjoy!
Three-year-old Ginny Weasley sat on her father's knee. He bounced her steadily as he read the Daily Prophet, and she giggled happily at spending time with her father. He always spent so much time working at the Ministry, and she always missed him dearly when he was away. Though she loved her mother, there was something so very special about the relationship they had. She was, undoubtedly, daddy's little girl.
"Daddy, when I grow up, I want to play Quidditch. Ron told me that girls could never be any good." She declared this defiantly, smiling to herself as she kept her chin held high.
He folded up his newspaper and set it down beside him on the end table. After taking a long look at his youngest child – his only little girl – he smiled. She had so much of her mother in her that it was uncanny, but she also had so much of his Weasley determination – heavily influenced by her brothers and their ruthless teasing. She'd never be the girly girl that Molly had hoped for.
No – she was much better than that.
"Ginbug, you can be anything you want when you're all grown up," he said, wrapping his arms around her middle.
Her eyes lit up like Christmas. "Do you really mean that, Daddy?" she asked. "I can be anything in the whole world?"
Arthur nodded. "Yes, you can."
"So, I can be a teacher if I want to?"
"Sure. You'd be a great teacher."
"Can I work at the Ministry like you?"
"Of course."
"Can I be a mummy like my mum?"
He closed his eyes briefly, pulling his little girl even more tightly into him. "Yes, Ginbug. You can be a mummy one day, but not for years and years."
Ginny smiled brightly. "Okay, Daddy. In years and years and years, I'll be a mummy, and I'll play Quidditch, too!"
Arthur pressed his fingers into his eyes, doing his best to suppress his tears. He sat beside his wife in the tea room at St. Mungo's, just waiting. In his emotional state, his memories flooded his system – one in particular. His little girl, only three years old, sitting on his lap and asking him if one day she could be a Quidditch player and a mother. It was a moment in time that he cherished more than any other, and it was one that he would never forget for as long as he lived.
Now here they were, twenty years later, and she had become what she'd dreamt of being all her life. He couldn't have been more proud.
He wrapped an arm around his wife, who was openly shedding tears as they all anxiously awaited Harry's entrance into the tea room. More than anything, Arthur wanted to know if Ginny's first child would be a boy or a girl, if he or she would have Weasley red hair, what colour the baby's eyes would be. He couldn't wait to meet the new life that his own little girl was bringing into the world.
It was a joyous occasion when Harry finally did enter the room. The whole family was there, jumping for joy, as the young man extended the good news to the family. Arthur barely registered the fact that he had a healthy new grandson – it was all so surreal.
After what seemed like months of waiting, Harry led Arthur and Molly into the Ginny's hospital room. The Weasley patriarch had to choke back tears at the sight of his little girl. She was practically glowing with pride as she held her baby boy against her chest. When their eyes locked, though, her smile widened only slightly. It was subtle, but Arthur noticed it immediately.
Molly approached Ginny, who handed the baby over to her mother. Harry stood close by, doting along with the older woman. But Arthur took the opportunity to sit at his own daughter's side – to hold her hand tightly and to finally allow a single tear of joy to slide down his cheek.
"Are you all right, Dad?" Ginny asked, squeezing his hand in return.
"I'm fine, Ginbug," he replied immediately. His heart warmed when Ginny's smile broadened even further at the use of her childhood nickname.
They sat in silence for a few moments, hands embraced as the pair watched Harry and Molly interact with the new baby.
"What's his name?" Arthur asked.
"James Sirius," she answered.
He smiled at the name, knowing that it was fitting for a child of Harry Potter. But that wasn't why he'd wanted to speak to his daughter alone. Not to discuss the new baby's name – and not really to talk about the new baby at all. There'd be infinite moments for such discussion, but moments alone with Ginny would always be few and far between, especially now that she had a brand new life to devote her time to. But he had something to say – something important. He just didn't know how he should go about saying it.
Finally, he turned towards Ginny and reached into the pocket of his robes. A small wrapped box was removed, and he handed it to his daughter wordlessly.
"You shouldn't have bought me a present, Dad, honestly." Nevertheless, Ginny opened the package. A look of curiosity crossed her features as she studied the small crystal flask. A silver substance glistened at the bottom. "Is it – is that… a memory?"
"Yes, Ginny, a very special memory," Arthur said. "It's a memory that I've told you about – from when you were just a little girl. You sat on my knee and told me what you wanted to do with your life, and Merlin, Ginny, you've done exactly what you set out to do when you were just a baby!"
A puzzled expression washed over her features. "But, Dad, I know all about this memory. You didn't need to give it up – I know how much it must mean to you."
"It means the world to me, Ginny," he clarified. "But you've got your own family now, and you're going to start having memories just like this, with your own son."
"That doesn't make what we shared all those years ago any less special, you know."
Arthur smiled at that. Just knowing that his little girl appreciated their relationship when she was a grown woman equally as much as she had when she was a child was all he needed to know.
"I know I've told you the story a thousand times over, but I want you to see it through my eyes, Ginbug. I want you to understand that I've loved you your whole life, unconditionally, and that that will never change."
"You know I don't need a memory to know that, Dad," Ginny responded quietly, her own eyes beginning to glisten with the unshed tears that Arthur knew she'd never release. She held the flask against her chest – right over her heart. "But thank you. I'll cherish this forever."
Almost as if on cue, Harry and Molly returned to Ginny's bedside, still gushing over baby James as they handed him back to his mother. Ginny set the flask beside her before accepting her son – holding him against her protectively – but her eyes did not leave her father's for a few more minutes.
Arthur knew that, someday, he'd allow her to see this memory through his eyes, too.