May

"I'd say you're due early September," the medi-witch announced cheerfully. Ginny frowned.

"September? Why did my pregnancy symptoms start so late? I'm not even showing, shouldn't I have a bump by now?" she asked in confusion. Rabastan squeezed her hand gently in support.

"Every witch is different, as much as people like to claim that this should happen within this box of time and that should happen within that box of time it really doesn't work that way," the medi-witch explained. "Some women go their entire pregnancy without ever discovering that they're pregnant, they don't have symptoms, they don't show, and they get one hell of a surprise when they walk into St. Mungos and get told they're about to have a baby when they only came in for intense stomach cramps. These things happen, they aren't common, but they happen." Ginny nodded her understanding and shifted in her seat.

"Am I far enough along to tell if they're a girl or a boy?" she asked. Glancing at Rabastan. "We don't have to if you don't want, but I want to know," she explained. Rabastan nodded.

"I'd like to know as well," he agreed. The medi-witch flicked her wand at Ginny's abdomen and smiled widely.

"It's a girl," she said and Rabastan thought his heart might explode.

June

They argued about names, never quite able to agree on anything. She liked Jennifer, he liked Kathryn, they argued about it into the early hours of the morning. He suggested Sloane and she threw a vase at his head. It would have been unbearable if every argument didn't end in mind blowing sex.

"At this rate we'll end up calling her 'Girl' and she'll never have a name," he complained to Theo over drinks one night. Theo just laughed at him, completely unsympathetic.

"Draco and Luna argued over names too," he said, smiling fondly at the thought of his best friend. "Hermione said she'd never seen Luna raise her voice before but she did with Draco, several times."

"Do you know-"

"America. The Magical Congress offered them protection," Theo told him, knowing what he was going to ask. "They're married now, Draco sends pictures of Lyra to Hermione once a month, they're happy." Rabastan looked over at Theo and eyed him nervously.

"That's risky, sending you and Hermione letters," he mused. "What if the Dark Lord tracks them down?" Theo rolled his eyes.

"The Dark Lord is dying, both his health and his magic are failing him." Theo scowled. "When he's gone Lucius has plans on how to take over and set things back to the way they were." Rabastan nodded in understanding and the subject was dropped.

"When are you going to knock up your bird?" he asked. He laughed when Theo's eyes went wide and choked on his drink.

July

He bought her a ring. It was a disastrous thing but he tried. He made her dinner and they ate it on a blanket he'd laid out on the floor in front of the fireplace and he'd put the ring in her glass of sparkling cider and she'd very nearly swallowed it.

"Why are you trying to kill me with a sapphire ring?" she asked him, quirking an eyebrow.

"Well I was trying to propose but apparently you don't pay any attention at all to the things you put in your mouth," he said, chuckling in amusement. Ginny glared at him.

"Are you trying to tell me I don't pay enough attention to your cock?" she demanded. He burst into hysterical laughter, which wasn't, apparently, what Ginny had wanted. She stood up and began to march away angrily and he had to chase her down and stop her from leaving the room.

"I'm sorry, I'm trying to do this right and-"

"We can't get married," she told him coldly. His laughing smile died on his lips and he felt his heart drop into the pit of his stomach.

"What? Why not?" he demanded, unable to keep the hurt out of his voice. Ginny's angry expression softened.

"We're not allowed. The Dark Lord wouldn't allow it for Draco and Luna and I highly doubt he'll change his mind for us." She sighed and reached out to touch his face. "I would marry you Rabastan, if I could." He felt his heart soar at her words. She amazed him, everything about her amazed him. That she could love him despite the part of him that was a monster amazed him.

August

She woke up on Percy's birthday crying. She spent most of the morning sitting in the library, staring at the pictures of her and her brother and desperately wishing that she could talk to him, that she could tell him about the child growing inside of her or about the love she had found in such an unexpected place.

She knew that if anyone could understand her odd romance Percy could, if for no other reason than he was the only person she could think of that would even try. Her parents would have been disappointed in her, the rest of her brothers would have been furious that she'd fallen for a Death Eater, but Percy, Percy would have listened to all the reasons she had for loving Rabastan and when she was done talking he would have nodded and told her that if she was happy then that was okay. He had only ever wanted her to be happy.

She took a shower after lunch, taking the opportunity to cry more because honestly it was the one day she really gave herself to cry anymore. She washed herself hurriedly, not really knowing why she was rushing but feeling the urget sense to be done as quickly as possible and get out of there. In her haste to get out of the shower she turned too fast and her foot slid on the slick tile floor. She fell, landing hard and sending a jolt through her entire body.

She screamed at the ripping sensation she felt deep in her stomach. The pain was blinding, so much so that she didn't even realize that Rabastan had run into the room until he was kneeling by her side, smoothing her hair away from her face.

"Gin, it's going to be okay, Theo is flooing for the medi-witch," he whispered to her. Ginny blinked up at him, breathing hard between sobs and screams because everything fucking hurt.

"It hurts. Rabastan it hurts," she whimpered.

"I know, there's a lot of blood Gin, and the baby's coming." She shook her head violently.

"She's too early Rabastan she'll never make it," she argued.

"She will, magic can do a lot, she's only a month early, she'll live."

"No ones coming. Your medi-witch is doing someone else's delivery right now and no one else is available," Theo spoke as he ran into the room, not bothering to look away from Ginny's nudity. "I'm going to go get Hermione, but you're going to have to deliver that baby by yourself Rab." Ginny felt a spike of fear shoot through her, laced with panic and pain.

"I'm not ready for this," she admitted when Theo was gone, but Rabastan was already kneeling between her legs and telling her to push while murmuring things that she was sure were supposed to be comforting that she couldn't hear over the pain and the sound of her own screaming.

She had no idea how much time had passed, no idea of how long it took before her baby tore her way from her womb and into the world, it felt like a lifetime, but by the time it was over Ginny couldn't even be relieved. The sound of her baby crying rang in her ears even as the edges of darkness began to push down on her.

"She's so perfect Gin," she heard Rabastan say. "She's got your hair. She's healthy, strong just like you. She's going to be okay Ginny." Peace. That's what she felt the moment the words left Rabastan's lips. Her daughter was going to live, she was strong and healthy.

"Ginny?" Her eyes flew open at the sound of the voice that she was sure she could not have heard. But she had, she was sure, because she could see him, he was there. "Come with me," he invited, smiling. "I've missed you."

"Percy." She reached out and took his hand, her baby's cries still ringing in her ears.