Draco held his breath as he stepped inside the home. It felt empty and dead, much like his home with Astoria had felt after her passing. Draco held his eyes closed for a moment as thoughts about Astoria passed through his mind.
"As you can see, some things need to be put away before Ginny can come back," George said, plucking Harry's Auror robe from a chair in the living room. "I know this might be easy for you, but keep in mind that this is someone that mattered to Ginny, so don't just throw things around."
"I know," Draco said, not moving from the spot he was standing in, just inside the flat.
George stared at him for a moment, and then cocked his head to the side. "Are you okay?"
No, he was not okay. He was having flashbacks to cleaning out his own home. "I'm fine."
George raised an eyebrow. "You look a bit paler than usual is all." He shrugged and then pulled out his wand, a few boxes appearing in front of him. "Well, make yourself useful and start packing some stuff up. Not everything, just…"
"I know," Draco interrupted. "Just the things that would cause her pain to look at." Draco picked up a box roughly and walked over to the bookshelf that spanned the entire living room. There were pictures and trinkets all over it. "Just so you know, even her things will cause her pain."
"Hmm?" George asked, turning away from the mantle of the fireplace where he had removed a few picture frames.
"We can't just pack up Potter's things and expect Ginny to be able to waltz in here like everything is fine. He lived here; he touched everything, which means everything has a memory of him with it. The fucking trashcan probably reminds her of him. Every inch of every thing in the flat has Potter's face attached to it in her mind. She'll never be able to touch anything and not think of him. She'll never be able to look around and not be accosted by memories."
George stared at Draco and frowned. "Who did you lose?"
Draco glanced back at George before returning to his task. He grabbed a glass box from the shelf that held a snitch inside of it. "My wife."
"I'm sorry," George said quietly.
"It was four years ago," Draco answered the unasked question. "She was pregnant."
George sighed, backing up and collapsing into the chair Harry's robe had been thrown over. "Merlin, I was going to say I know what it's like, but I'm not sure I do."
Draco remembered that George was now the twin, but he used to one of the twins. "We all lost a lot in the war, but we shouldn't still be losing people because of it."
"What do you mean?" George asked simply, summoning a jumper from the bench by the window. He folded it and added it to the box he had by his foot.
George's misunderstanding alarmed Draco. "Well, ultimately, didn't Ginny lose Harry due to spells from the war?" He glanced over his shoulder causally to see George's reaction to what he said.
George nodded and shrugged. "Yeah, I suppose everyone's saying it's spell damage." George stood and began sorting out the mantle once more.
Draco stared at the snitch within the box. To someone who hadn't spent time watching Harry's memories, it would look like some broken snitch, but Draco knew Dumbledore had hidden the resurrection stone in it during the war. It was the last time Harry had seen his parents. It was tied strongly to Harry, but it was also a sign that people aren't truly gone even when they've died. Draco placed it back on the shelf and began to look at the books. Suddenly his eyes landed on a book with a black leather spine that was unmarked. His heart began pounding in his ears as he pulled it out.
He threw a quick glance over his shoulder to make sure George was still engrossed in his task. Crouching over it slightly, Draco flipped the book open. His eyes widened. It was the book. It was Harry's journal.
'…poison I can't get out of my system. Jenson said there is nothing I can do to reverse what's happening. But I can't let anyone know Ginny's got anything to do with it. With all we've both gone through in the past, I can't let anyone hurt her. She's been through enough. I just wish the pain would stop. Jenson gave me a low-grade pain reliever, but he said it might keep me from knowing if I'm getting worse, but I can barely move without taking it. Besides, I know it's getting worse, but Ginny's so happy. I could never take away what she has always wished for. I don't know when to tell her I know what's been happening, but if I wait much longer I'll be dead…"
"Draco, can you grab the frame behind this one?" George asked, his voice strained.
Draco turned and saw the uncomfortable position George was in, holding two frames in his hands, making a small opening for someone to grab the one in the very back. The blond began to walk over, setting the journal on the couch. He squeezed his arm between George's and picked up the frame, carefully pulling it out. "Thanks, mate," George sighed, placing the other two frames down behind the wall of trinkets that sat in front of them.
Harry, Ron, and Lupin smiled from behind a fully stocked Christmas dinner table. Ron waved between bites of chicken and Harry laughed at him.
"I thought Ron might want it," George said. "Put it in the small box by the door. I was thinking we could spread around some of Harry's stuff. I know Gin wouldn't mind."
Draco crossed the room and placed the picture inside of the box. Ron made a face as they jerked around slightly at the movement. Draco couldn't help but smile at how much the photo version of teenage Ron was similar to how he was as an adult. Draco turned to return to his previous task when he saw George holding the journal. "Oh…no," Draco started, walking back over to the twin. "I found that."
George looked up from the page he had turned to randomly. "Good job, this is definitely something that should be locked up," George pointed out, closing the book.
It's okay, it's okay, it's okay. He'll put it in the box, and you can get it out when he isn't looking, Draco assured himself. But George didn't put it in a box, he shoved it into his back pocket.
So Draco watched him, and watched him, and watched him. They were two hours into the task and almost complete, and Draco still had his eyes trained on George's back pocket.
George chuckled and turned around, holding a plate with a kitten running around on it. "Remind you of anyone?" he asked, still laughing. "That old bitch should a far away memory." George placed the plate on the top of a box and closed the last kitchen cupboard. "I think we're about done. All we need to do is move Gin's stuff out of the coat closet and put all these boxes in there."
Maybe he forgot. The journal was still sticking out of his back pocket, waiting for Draco to grab it. He had debated about knocking the twin out just to get it, but that seemed to cause more problems than it would solve.
Draco followed him blindly to the cloak closet in question and held out his arms for the cloaks that George was taking out. "Does she have a place for these?" Draco asked, his voice muffled as a large wool cloak covered his mouth.
"Nah, I'll put most of them at my mums. The rest can get shoved in Harry's side of the closet," George said, placing a few jumpers and scarves on Draco's pile.
They hadn't removed every trace of Harry. His side of the bedroom closet still contained some of his clothing. They had left one set of his Auror robes in the closet for her, but they tried to take away anything that would remind Ginny about the last time Harry was in the flat. His daily coffee mug had been placed in the back of the cupboard, and his extra pair of glasses were tucked away in his desk.
"Okay," George approved the state of the closet. "Just set those down on the couch, and pick up a box."
Draco complied, putting the coats and cloaks on the green sofa and grabbing one of the bigger boxes they had packed. He followed George's lead and placed in within the closet, on top of another box. Soon the closet was filled and George was closing it, ready to perform the locking spells. The book is still in his pocket, Draco couldn't help but think over and over again. George was about to leave it out, and Draco still had a chance to get it.
"Whoops, almost forgot," George said, pulling the back book from his back pocket. "This should probably be locked up more than anything," he laughed, opening the closet and placing the journal on top. He closed the door once more and performed multiple charms, none of them requiring him to speak.
Draco watched carefully, but could not pick up on any of the spells he was casting. That worried him, because he had always been gifted in recognizing spells, no matter how quiet the charm was. He was worried the man was using some of the infamous Weasley-made charms, charms that Draco knew nothing about.
"That should do," George smiled. "Threw in some of Bill's home-made Gringott's charms. Not necessary, but still fun to use." George waved his wand at the pile Draco had put on the couch and they were gone, most likely now hanging in a closet at the Burrow. "Hey, thanks for helping, I know you didn't have to. I don't know why you stopped talking to Ginny, but she really needs someone like you right now."
Draco gave him a small smile and shrugged. He wanted to respond, but he was so full of mixed emotions. The journal in the closet was calling his name, and there was no way he would get to it. He wanted to see Ginny, but the journal in the closet could very well say she was a murderer.
"I have a question, if you don't mind," George began, fixing his button-up checkered shirt.
"Go ahead," Draco allowed, ready for another question about Ginny he couldn't answer.
"Why aren't you as much of a shit as you used to be?"
The question was bold, but Draco could tell by George's soft expression that he meant it as a compliment. Draco had never really thought about it, but he had changed a lot since school. "Erm, wow, I suppose you are a bit humbled when everything in your life completely collapses around you. I lost some things in the war, and I was definitely more thoughtful after that, but nothing compares to losing everything. I mean, I lost everything I knew. All I had left was my job, so I just went all in, and luckily I was good at it. I spent a lot of time in Austria and Greece, and I just began to appreciate how beautiful everything is. You only have so much time to be here, so why not love everything?" Draco paused, beginning to feel a bit embarrassed about his explanation.
"That's amazing, mate. You better quit fucking about with my sister, because you are exactly what she needs right now. She won't bloody listen to a thing I say, and everyone else in our family is completely insane," George explained. "Are you hungry?"
"A bit," Draco shrugged, not really worried about food as much as he was about other things.
"I had dinner plans with Gin, do you want to come?"
He couldn't turn the man down, but he also couldn't be seen in public with Ginny. "I actually would like to, but I don't think it's a good idea. What with all the press following her, they would get a picture and who knows what they would write about."
"The dinner's at my house," George added, winking at the blond. "She'll be happy to see you."
Draco thought that the girl would most likely not be happy to see him, but boy did he underestimate her reaction. George had left to get Ginny via broom, and Draco was reading the paper in George's small house when the host returned with his sister. Ginny took one step in the house and immediately turned around.
"What the hell is he doing here?" Ginny demanded an answer from George, poking him in the chest roughly. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack? You can't do things like this to me. I'm really fucking pregnant!"
George laughed at how angry she was, grabbing her prodding hand gently in his. "No, listen, Gin. Draco helped me today, and I invited him to join us. If at any moment you want him to leave, he is willing to leave."
This was not something Draco had agreed to.
"Fine," Ginny snapped. "I want him to leave now."
"Ginevra, that is just childish. He hasn't even told you what we did for you," George said, pushing his little sister into the house.
Ginny pushed her brother away from her and looked at Draco. "What did you do for me?"
She was showing a lot more than she was the last time he saw her. He supposed she was almost six months now. "We cleaned your flat," he said quietly.
A look of panic crossed her face. "What do you mean?" she snapped, looking at George suddenly. "Did you throw anything away? You didn't get rid of anything did you? I don't want to get rid of anything!"
Draco couldn't help but think her anger stemmed from wanting to cover something up at the house. Maybe she knew about the journal and wanted to find it before anyone else and destroy it. It held so many secrets. Maybe she hadn't had time to clean up her home potion's set. George was the one who cleaned up the workroom, who knows what was in there. Maybe she had left out a bottle of whatever it was that caused Potter's 'spell poisoning.' It was just speculation, but it was Draco's job to speculate now. He wanted to think she was mad because she wanted Harry's things. She was mad because the love of her life passed away, and she wanted every bit of him she could keep. That's the reason why Draco had a whole closet of formal gowns in his guest room.
"Calm down, Mum," George smiled, wrapping his arms around Ginny. "We just put some things away, we made your flat a bit less depressing. I think it's about time you get out of mum's house. She's rubbing off on you a bit too much."
Ginny pressed her face into her brother's chest for a few moments and then looked at Draco. "Thank you, that's very nice," Ginny said sweetly.
"It was nothing," Draco nodded. "I know what it's like to go back to a house that someone just left. You won't have to see any of that now."
Ginny crossed the room and slowly put her arms around Draco, sighing as she set her head on his chest like she had with her brother. "I'm sorry," she whispered.
From behind Ginny, George smiled at the two and crossed the room to enter the kitchen. "You've got Mum's mood swings down," George called from the other room.
Ginny picked her head up and scoffed. "I'll have you know that the mood swings are a product of the life form growing inside of me." She took a step away from Draco and sat at the dinning room table. "Ugh, and mum won't quit telling me about pregnancy things."
Draco followed Ginny's lead and sat down at the table.
George brought out the plates, more food floating behind him. "What has she said?"
She plucked up a bread roll and took a bite before answering his question. "She complained about not being able to sleep at night, and her back hurting, and oh Merlin! The worst one she just spoke about the other day." She covered her face in embarrassment. "She said she was super randy all during her pregnancies. She said she used to accost Dad on the stairs and wake him up in the middle of the night."
"Disgusting," George stated, serving himself a plate of spaghetti. "Well, what is the point of her telling you that?"
"I haven't the foggiest, I know she doesn't want me to ever date. She said it the other day. She said no man could prove himself worthy of raising Harry Potter's child." Ginny took a few bites of food and rolled her eyes.
Draco scoffed and shook his head. "The baby is yours!" he said with more force than he meant to. "I'm sorry," he mumbled to their shocked faces. "I've heard her say it before, and Merlin knows the papers always say you're carrying his child. For the love of Gryffindor, it's your baby, too. It will always be your baby."
The two Weasleys remained silent after Draco finished. "Thank you," Ginny finally spoke up.
"I don't mean to get so emotional about it, but I can't imagine people saying that to anyone. They're so awful."
George looked back and forth between the two, before picking up his napkin to wipe his mouth. "So how randy are you?" he asked Ginny.
They all began laughing instantly.
"Honestly?" she asked, looking between the two men at the table. "It's insane. I took the night bus home the other day, and I found myself fanaticizing about that creepy old man that drives it. It's like literally every man I spot when I'm out of the house is the most attractive thing I have ever seen. And when I see an actually attractive man, Merlin, it's bad," she laughed, returning to her meal.
George chuckled and sipped his drink, holding eye contact with Draco. "How much more time do you have anyway? You're getting pretty big."
Ginny made a face at him and swallowed the bite of food in her mouth. "Ha. Ha. The healer said I'm due November 20th. Don't think I can't tell how huge I am. I look like a bloody troll."
"No you don't, you're beautiful."
If Draco ignored it, everyone else would, too. But unfortunately it seemed like everyone at the table had heard his comment.
"Sex?" George asked.
Ginny's face turned bright red, her head snapping to face her brother. "What?"
"Did the healer tell you the sex of the baby?" he clarified, an innocent expression on his face.
"Oh, no. I don't want to know. Harry wanted us to wait until the birth to find out," Ginny explained.
"Is it true you've already picked the names?" Draco asked, a small on his face. "I heard Harry if it's a boy, and Harriett if it's a girl."
"Christ," Ginny shook her head, laughing. "Who said that?"
"Hmm, I think it was Rita Skeeter, I saw it a month ago. It was the same issue of her magazine that said I am actually my father taking polyjuice potion. So, obviously it's a very reliable source," Draco explained, a half hidden smile on his lips.
"Right you are, Lucius," Ginny agreed, a smile growing on her lips. She placed her hand over her stomach and her face suddenly became distorted.
Draco stood up, seeing her make that face in the past. "Ginny," he exclaimed, placing his hand atop hers on her stomach.
She shook her head, not saying anything aloud. "I'm okay, just been having a few pains lately."
Draco crouched down next to her and studied her face. "Are you sure? Do you want me to take you to the healer? I could get a healer here; I have one on call," he explained.
The redhead held her eyes closed for another moment and then returned his eye contact. "I'm okay, honestly, just a bit of pain. My healer said it's normal and not to worry unless it gets much worse." She patted the top of his hand and smiled. "Thank you."
George watched Draco return to his seat, an eyebrow raised. "Well, why don't we all pile in this Muggle car of Draco's I've been hearing about and head over to Ginny's place?"
Ginny looked back and forth between the men and sighed. "Right, I'll go with you, but I'm not promising I'm staying the night, or even for an hour."
"Deal," Draco nodded. "Bibsy!"
