Warnings: abusive relationship (emotionally and mentally but not really physically). I already know some of you will have problems with this chapter. But a lot more of you have been asking questions/getting angry about the relationship between Ginny and Harry. If that's the case, then this is the chapter you've been waiting for! We finally get a pretty good look into what was going on there.

.vii.

"Just choose one Harry," Hermione groaned. There were an array of cake slices before them. "You are supposed to be the decisive one."

They only had ten days before the wedding. Harry had still yet to choose a cake flavour.

"But what if no one likes what I choose?"

"Tough for them, it's our wedding."

Harry pouted. "Teddy would be so disappointed."

Hermione sighed. She pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes. "Teddy will literally eat anything." She looked back up at him, thoroughly exasperated. "I had to stop him from eating my lipstick the other day."

Harry snorted out a laugh. "In his defence, it smelled like raspberries."

Hermione couldn't help her incredulous laughter. Honestly, her boys. She dropped her hands to the table and took a steadying breath. "Okay, fruity, chocolate, or vanilla?"

Harry narrowed his eyes. "Chocolate?" he responded slowly.

"Filling?"

"More chocolate?" he continued, even more slowly and unsure. Hermione stifled her laughter and picked up a slice of cake. She gave it to her fiancé. Harry took a bite and immediately moaned. "It tastes like chocolate treacle tart but better."

"I think we have our cake." Hermione pulled out her clipboard and wrote the flavour of cake down. She made a couple other notes as Harry continued to indulge himself in the chocolate confection. "Madame Mayflower says she'll have it ready for us in time. There aren't any magical ingredients in any of these flavours either, so we can give out a recipe if my Aunt Sarah asks and I know she will."

Harry nodded along. "I got all the flowers ordered before I met you here. They'll come the day before the wedding and we can set everything up. And by that I mean Mrs. Weasley will set everything up and probably clean the place top to bottom."

Hermione smiled off into the middle distance. "Merlin, I love that woman."

"Teddy will be with Andy until we pick him up on Tuesday after the long weekend." He rubbed his forehead and sighed. "Are we sure Teddy can't stay with her?"

Hermione shrugged in defeat. "She has to marry Richard, it's the law. And he refuses to have Teddy in his house. Andy doesn't think it'll be safe for him. She loves Teddy more than anything in the world, she won't risk his safety."

Harry leaned forward, his face serious. "Did he outright threaten Teddy?"

Hermione leaned forward as well. "Does it matter? Would you ever put a child in a home where someone didn't want him?" Harry couldn't argue against that. He'd lived in that exact situation. It wasn't something he'd ever willingly put Teddy through. There was only so much Andy could do to protect him. "And she can't walk away. If she does, she gets kicked out of the magical world and then she'll never see Teddy. This is the best way to do things that allows her to see her grandson often."

"I just don't get how he could do this. The more I think about it, the more upset I get that Andy's just letting Teddy go."

Hermione covered Harry's hand with both of her own. "She's not letting him go. She's picking her battles. She's going to have to marry this man. She's going to have to raise children with him. How will it affect Teddy if in a few years, when Andy has a baby that is treated like gold by his step-grandfather while he's treated like… less than dirt?" She smiled sadly at him. "We both know, Teddy will never have that problem in our home."

Harry closed his eyes and sighed sadly. "You're right. Of course, you're right." He shook his head. "I'll drop it now. Are you sure you don't want a longer honeymoon?" His question was thrown into the conversation like a lifeline for a desperate change in topic. He pushed his plate away. His forehead was creased with anxiety.

Hermione ran with the change in topic. Her nose wrinkled as she shook her head. "I've got loads of work to do and let's face it, you'd go nuts without work for too long." Harry shrugged and nodded in agreement. He loved his job. "The only problem with the short honeymoon is what to do with Teddy when we get back," she continued tentatively.

Harry sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose beneath his glasses. "I have a list of daycares with appointments to check them out — all this Tuesday — all magical." As much as Hermione and Harry both wanted Teddy to get to know the muggle world a bit, they couldn't do so until Teddy had better control of his magic.

Hermione nodded and marked it down on the calendar clipped to the front of her clipboard. She paused. "Oh no, I made more appointments with real estate agents that day." Harry rolled his eyes. "We're bound to find something eventually," she cajoled.

Harry leaned forward. "The houses are massive," he complained. "They don't care what we want they just want our money."

"If we're just more clear and concise with our specifications—"

"Hermione…" She broke off and sighed. "What about muggle realtors?"

Hermione made a face. "That could take ages. Not the showings, but the process, for sure."

"At least they won't come at us thinking we can buy a mansion," Harry argued irritably.

Hermione's mouth pinched though she didn't disagree. "Let's look at what this realtor has for us first. We can't have Teddy sleeping on the couch. He needs his own space."

He took her hand. "I agree. We'll figure something out. When are the appointments?"

"They're open houses. We can go in the morning before we head to the daycares."

Harry nodded. "Alright," his thumb rubbed soothingly against the back of her hand, "we can do this, 'Mione. If anyone in the world can do this and be happy? It's us."

:::

Hermione pursed her lips as Ron shovelled food into his mouth. As mature as he sometimes seemed to her, he was still and always would be Ron. It was oddly comforting. She turned back to her fish and chips and waited for him to inhale. She counted to thirty before it happened.

"How's Padma?"

"Pregnant," Ron replied shortly. He raised his eyebrows and paused. "Very pregnant. I had to go get her Honey Jalapeno Pickle ice cream at two in the morning the other day."

She scrunched her nose up in disgust. "I'm sorry, pickle ice cream?"

"Pickle jalapeno ice cream."

Hermione blinked as she held a chip halfway to her mouth. "I never want to be pregnant."

Ron snorted. He wiped his hands on his cloth napkin. His eyes focused on her. "So, you're getting married in a week."

"Nice segway."

"I'm nothing if not subtle."

Hermione pressed her lips together in an attempt not to smile. "No," she decided, "too easy."

Ron snorted in amusement. "Don't change the subject. How are things between you two? I've been a little busy myself and honestly, trying to stay out of the drama. I have diapers to change, I don't need to worry about anyone else's shit on top of that."

She rolled her eyes fondly. "Good move. It's been hell." She rubbed the place just above her eyebrow. Hermione had begun to notice the way her head hurt just about there whenever she started to think about 'the Ginny Problem' as she liked to privately call it.

Ron gave her a sympathetic look. "I heard Gin moved back home for a bit."

Hermione took a deep breath before she fixed Ron with a serious expression. "Harry and I are getting married… and we're not getting out it. The law isn't going to be retracted and neither of us are going to try to make it happen."

Her redheaded best friend stared at her for a long moment. He nodded slowly. "That would explain Ginny's actions recently. She hasn't been this petulant since Harry first broke up with her after Dumbledore's funeral."

That comment got a reaction out of Hermione. "She was like this then?"

"She can be pretty territorial," he supplied, giving the understatement of the century. Hermione told him so and he shrugged. "And you're leaving something out."

She looked around at the public restaurant they were in. Ron immediately got the message that it was not information for public places. "They've got… dirt on me."

Ron stilled. He leaned forward as his the tips of his ears turned red. His fingers clenched into fists. "Are you okay?"

Hermione quickly grabbed his hand. "I'm fine. I swear. But it's safer if Harry and I just… do as we're told."

He nodded slowly as he processed exactly what that meant. His eyes widened. "Blimey, so you're like… actually getting married in seven days." Hermione smiled weakly. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She was not fine.

Ron rolled his eyes. "Right, now try with the truth," he scoffed.

Her weak smile returned. "I'm worried. There's a lot happening and every corner we turn there's another obstacle."

He nodded. "Do you not want to take Teddy in?"

"What? No! Of course, I do." She leaned forward earnestly. "I love that boy. He's so wonderful. If Harry couldn't take him in then I would."

"So, what're you worried about?" She shifted in her seat. Ron's eyes suddenly widened. He barely refrained from gasping. "You're worried about the sex!" he shouted.

Hermione waved her hands at him and she shushed him loudly. After a frantic look around the restaurant, she gave him a dark glare.

Ron had the decency to look abashed at his exclamation. He shrugged. "Well, aren't you?"

"I'm not," she instantly denied hotly.

He raised an eyebrow. "You haven't even thought about it, have you?"

Hermione cocked her head to the side. "Have you met me? Of course, I have. I mean…" She shook her head and let out a huff of breath. "It's Harry. He's beautiful. Sharing a bed with him and not getting to sleep with him is actually killing me."

Ron laughed loudly. "Of course, it is."

She sighed and stared off into the middle distance. "He's so pretty."

"Hermione…"

"We're just friends," she explained quickly, getting back on topic. "We've been just friends for ages. I'm worried moving so drastically from friends to married is going to… mess us up."

"You don't want to be married?"

"No!" she exclaimed quickly. "I do. I mean… well, under different circumstances." The law and the minister's interference was certainly not the way she would have chosen to marry her best friend - or get married at all. "It's complicated."

"Definitely," Ron agreed simply.

She sighed. Her elbows rested on the table and she dropped her face into her hands. "I just wish we could do this a bit more gradually. I don't want our first… everything… to be on the day of a ministry mandated wedding."

"You two should date."

Hermione looked up at him with wide eyes. "I beg your pardon?"

"Go on a date!" he repeated, this time with more excitement. "You. Harry. Candles. Probably sex because you're involved."

"Oi," she objected, not actually insulted at all.

"I'm just saying…" he chuckled, hands raised in surrender.

Hermione pursed her lips into a pout. She looked down at her plate as she thought over Ron's suggestion. It wasn't crazy. It made sense to ease them into the changes they would see in their relationship. Slowly, she explained, "Harry is taking me out tomorrow night. The minister demanded it…"

"That's a good start. Treat it like a proper date."

Hermione gave him a funny look. "I don't even know how I'd be on a date with Harry. A proper one."

Ron grinned. He shook his head. "Don't lie, 'Mione. You've been thinking about it since we were kids."

Her cheeks turned bright red. "I never had feelings for him when we were together."

"I know," he responded softly, wanting to make sure she knew he wasn't accusing her of anything. "I didn't say you did. But there's always been something special between the two of you. I tried to pretend it was familial and that's probably the only reason we got to the point of dating but…" He leaned forward and his clear blue eyes stared seriously into her brown ones. "He will always be the most important person in the world to you and you will always be the same for him. That's more than some marriages ever amount to."

Hermione's eyes widened and her gaze dropped to her hands folded neatly in her lap. She didn't respond.

"You know what I think?" Ron continued when he saw that his friend had clearly been spooked by that statement. "I think you're scared. I think you're terrified that you're about to face down the rest of your life and so you're running the same way you ran from me when I proposed and then you ran from Wood years later when he did the same."

Hermione remained quiet, her cheeks red. Ron and she, as a rule of thumb, never discussed his failed marriage proposal. No one knew about it - not even Harry. Ron's proposal had been met with a mild panic attack, a three-day drinking bender, and the eventual destruction of their brief but sweet romance. It was a cloudy day in comparison to what had happened when Oliver Wood had proposed to her two years ago.

Hermione bit her lip. She hated the way her throat seemed to close up and her eyes stung. "Why am I like this?" she whispered in question.

Ron sighed. "I don't know. But I know you're a lot more put together about it then you were when faced with Wood or myself. You ran for the hills both times someone dropped down on one knee for you before. Your only worry with Harry seems to be how it'll go when he's down on both knees for you."

Hermione laughed. "You are so crude."

"You love it."

"I do." She smiled at him and discreetly wiped away a tear. "Thank you."

Ron's smile was wide and wonderful. Her friendship with the redhead wasn't anything like with Harry, but it was just as special. Ron knew things about her that Harry had never experienced with her - not yet, at least. "Anytime, 'Mione."

She sniffled and pushed her utensils around on the table as she cleared her throat. "I think you're right. I'll make a move on the date and…" she shrugged, "...go from there."

Ron smirked. "Be sure to tell me all the details. Or tell Padma so she'll tell me."

Hermione snorted in amused. "Sure."

:::

Harry flooed through to his old flat. He paused before the pristine white fireplace when he saw Ginny. His eyes widened.

She was standing beside an open box on the hardwood floor. Her brows drew together at the sight of him and her mouth pinched into a tight line.

"Hey," Harry offered lamely. She nodded once before turning back to her box of picture frames. "I thought you'd be at practice."

"Everyone's getting married or dealing with new fiancés every other day. The season is being delayed."

Harry nodded once. He shoved his hands into his pockets and rocked back on his heels. "I'll be quick. I'm just here for a few things I left behind."

"Don't bother," she snapped. "I'll be out before the end of the week." Before the wedding, went unspoken between them.

Harry's jaw tensed. "You don't want to keep the flat?" Ginny loved this place. She'd been in love with it the moment they'd stepped inside.

She looked over her shoulder at him and raised an eyebrow. The air between then was as fierce as the Scottish winters they'd grown up with. "It's not mine."

Harry shrugged. "I don't want it."

Ginner rolled her eyes. "I'm more than aware."

"Keep the flat," he told her.

She spun around to him. The air crackled with unrestrained magic. "Don't tell me what to do!"

Harry raised his hands in surrender. "You love this place, Ginny," he implored softly.

She stared at him longingly. "I also love you."

Harry's heart broke for her. She saw the sadness on his face and the traces of regret, but knew nothing had changed. "Did you?" When she didn't respond, he continued, "We were a mess."

"No thanks to you," she snapped.

"Oh, please." Harry rolled his eyes. His buried annoyance with her and her actions through their relationship rose up. There were many reasons he'd been driven to drink at the thought of sleeping with Hermione and being in love with her and being scared of a crap performance on his part were only the tip of the iceberg. "You and I both know you did more than your fair share to turn this relationship into the bullshit it was. You manipulated and controlled me at every turn."

"You left me with no choice!"

"That's no excuse! You lied to me. You used my emotions against me to get me to do what you wanted."

Ginny's face burned bright red. She knew she was guilty of exactly what he was claiming. She didn't think he'd ever call her out on it though."You know what? Fuck you, Harry! I'm not the only one who screwed this up. I did pull shit on you I shouldn't have, I'll admit that, but you don't get to stand there on your high horse like you didn't as well. Don't you dare use what I did to justify your own actions." There were angry tears in her eyes and Harry knew they weren't the fake kind.

A silence followed as they stared at each other. Finally, Harry admitted, "I never slept with her."

"That's not the only way to cheat on a person," she whispered back.

Harry looked down at his shoes. He didn't argue. He knew he had no defence. He may have never done anything that could have been physically labelled as cheating, but he'd been emotionally cheating on Ginny for years. His heart had been with Hermione their entire relationship and he'd done nothing to hide it. He was just as guilty of emotionally damaging Ginny as she was of him.

"Why did you do it?" she asked. "Why did you even get back together with me? Why would you put us through this?"

"I told you I didn't want to!" he exploded, his thrown wide in gesture. "You pushed me into this relationship the same way you've pushed me into every decision since then. I may be guilty of emotional cheating, but you've been emotionally manipulating me. Let's not even touch upon everything else," his tone was dangerous and his eyes dark.

Ginny crossed her arms over her chest and for the first time, she actually looked contrite. "I was losing you," she explained. "I tried everything I could think of to… make you need me."

"You crossed a line," Harry responded and his eyes watered. "I don't even know where I'm supposed to go from here." He closed his eyes before his emotions overwhelmed him. Ginny had been his only experience in a loving relationship and she'd twisted it all to her advantage. He hadn't even learned about half of her lies until a few years later. By that point, he was already stuck.

Harry looked at her when he heard her sniffle. Her face was splotchy, her mascara beginning to smudge. Harry had never seen her cry like this. He'd never seen her look so real. "I'm sorry," she sobbed. "I didn't want to hurt you."

"Then why? Why lie? Why… You told me I was your first."

"I don't know," she cried. Her shoulders shrugged meekly. "I was seventeen. I just… I wanted you. I wanted you and I wanted you to want me - only me. You didn't know anything about sex and… it was so easy to just…"

"Manipulate me?"

Ginny couldn't meet his eyes. She looked down at her shoes as she released a shaky breath. "I never meant for any of this to happen."

"Neither did I… neither did Hermione."

Ginny winced. "I know… I… I may have said some things to her at Ron's wedding." Harry raised his eyebrows. "She wouldn't have told you. It was horrible. I was horrible." She looked down at her shoes again. "It won't happen again. Blaise wants to take a trip before we get married. Somewhere we can try to get to know each other without… everything else." Her eyes flickered back up to him. "And everyone."

Harry nodded slowly. "That sounds like a good idea," he offered awkwardly. "He's been good to you?"

"Better than I deserve."

Harry shook his head. "You deserve to be treated like a princess, Ginny. You deserve all the love and attention that… that I selfishly hid away from you."

She wiped harshly at the tears on her cheeks. "Will we still be friends?" she asked desperately. Her voice sounded childlike in its vulnerability.

Harry floundered for a response. He didn't think they'd been friends for a long while. Eventually, he nodded. "Maybe not right away. But… we'll always be family."

:::

"You look lovely," Harry breathed. Hermione smiled sweetly and turned on the spot for him. The dress flared as she spun. The deep blue material glittered like a starry night sky. The fabric kissed her skin, paying homage to her curves. The back of the dress dipped down low and tantalizing.

"Thank you, Luna picked it out." She wrinkled her nose. "It's not too sparkly?"

Harry shook his head, momentarily speechless as he stared at her. He tugged at his collar. "I think you look…"

"Lovely?" she teased.

He laughed. "For a lack of a better word, yes." He held out his hand to her. "Let's get this over with."

Hermione smirked as she placed her hand in his. "Don't sound too excited."

He pulled her close to his body. His arms wrapped around her waist. His fingers spread across the bare skin of her back and Harry honestly thought he'd die from the contact alone. "Well, excuse me," he replied sarcastically to cover the flush in his cheeks and the elation in his chest, "but I don't really fancy the thought of having a date for the sole purpose of being watched like zoo animals."

He tightened his hold and disapparated on the spot. Hermione gasped for breath and laughed as they landed on the street of Diagon Alley. She wrapped her arms around his neck. Her chest leaned into his. "And here I was thinking the date was so you could get me into your bed?"

"Technically, it's your bed," he quipped and Hermione laughed loudly.

A camera flashed.

Hermione's amusement immediately died. Harry's arms tensed around her. "Ignore them," he whispered into her ear. "And remember to stick to safe topics." She sighed and nodded silently.

Harry stepped back and took her hand before leading her to the restaurant. It was a relatively classy place that both would normally turn their noses up at. Hermione had been surprised when Harry said he'd gotten a reservation. She'd have rather just gone to the Leaky. As they stepped up the stairs to The Greenhouse, Hermione decided to reiterate this fact.

Harry smiled and tried not to roll his eyes. He stopped her at the top step while he stood one below. With Hermione's heels, they were the same height and he stared warmly into her golden-brown gaze. "This is our last date before the big day," they both knew he meant their first date, "and I wanted it to be special."

Hermione rolled her eyes and smiled. She sighed dramatically. "Such a romantic."

"It's wasted on you."

Hermione turned at the top of the steps and stepped through the sleek black door of the restaurant. Cameras instantly flashed as they entered and Hermione remembered why she had never attended the Greenhouse before - it was paparazzi-friendly. Harry grumbled in her ear as he closed the door behind them.

The lighting in the restaurant was low, candles flickered on each table. A violin magically played itself quietly in the back corner. Hermione thought it was all ridiculously pretentious.

"Reservation for Harry Potter," Harry claimed needlessly.

"Right this way, Healer Potter."

They were led to a small circular table in the centre of the posh restaurant. Hermione's smile was tense as the maître d' pulled out her chair for her. "How… nice."

Harry smirked at her slightly pained tone.

"I'm glad you think so, madame," the snobbish maître d' said with his nasally voice. "We have been servicing wizarding high society for well over three centuries now."

"Impressive," Hermione replied, her eyes wide as she turned to Harry. He coughed into his fist to hide his smile.

"Very," the maître d' agreed haughtily. He extended a menu to Harry. "Might I recommend a wine selection for tonight? We have-"

"-Just a pint of butterbeer, actually." The maître d' almost looked offended. Harry gave him a cheeky grin.

"I'll have one too," Hermione put in with a sweet smile and a bat of her lashes.

The maître d' looked heavenward before sighing heavily. He plucked the wine list from Harry's hand and walked away looking like someone had shoved their wand up his arse. Harry and Hermione immediately dissolved into giggles.

Cameras flashed.

"Did you see his face?"

"I thought he was going to have an aneurysm."

"Maybe next time."

Hermione snorted into her hand at his glib response. He smirked at her before opening up the menu. They quietly pursued the scant list of dinner options available. Harry knew she liked quiet as she decided what she wanted.

He set his menu down when he came to a decision. His arms rested on the table as he leaned forward to watch his date. Her curls had not tamed since school, but Hermione had certainly learned to manage them better. She had her hair up in an elegant twist. Her neck looked long and her shoulders fine under the cut of the thin straps.

"You're staring."

Harry smiled as his eyes flickered up to her brown ones. The candles enhanced the tones of gold and caramel in her eyes.

"Harry…" she warned.

He took her hand into both of his and smiled charmingly. Cameras flashed. "I like looking at works of art."

Hermione smiled, her eyes flashing with amusement. She leaned forward and whispered, "I just spit up in my mouth."

Harry burst into laughter. He had to cover his mouth to smother the noise. Hermione's eyes glittered in amusement. Her smile was almost sinister as she watched him try to collect himself. He wiped a tear away from his eye as his shoulders shook. "You're horrible."

Hermione smiled widely in response. "You started it."

"Can't you even play along?"

Her head tilted and he could see how much she wanted to roll her eyes. "You take the fun out of everything."

He snorted out a laugh. "That's rich coming from 'Miss. Or Worse, Expelled.'" Hermione's cheeks turned pink. She tried not to smile and failed desperately. Harry watched her in amusement.

The butterbeers floated over to their table a minute later and a waiter came to take their order. Hermione glanced around the restaurant, well aware that more than a few couples were staring. Harry settled his elbows on the table as he leaned forward, determined to distract her from the attention. "I spoke with Andy today."

Hermione's eyes instantly shot to his. "When?"

"On lunch at work. She brought Teddy. He was over the moon, jumping up and down about how he was going to live with Uncle Harry and Aunty Mione."

She smiled sympathetically. "How was Andy about that?"

"Brave. There's not much she can do. She told me she's mostly just grateful that we're both so willing to take Teddy in."

"Well, of course, we are," Hermione responded briskly. "Teddy's your godson. You're already practically his father." She took a sip of her butterbeer.

Harry eyed her for a long moment. He swallowed and said, "And you're about to become his mother… practically." Hermione stilled. Her eyes flickered up from the tablecloth to meet his own. "Are you okay with that?"

Hermione looked around the restaurant and smiled faintly. "I thought we were sticking to safe topics?" she responded under her breath.

"Hermione," he pressed.

She tilted her head as she met his gaze once again. "I love Teddy," she replied softly. "You know that. I won't lie and say it's not… overwhelming to hear how much he wants us to be his 'mummy' and 'daddy.' Because it really is. But… I think that has more to do with Tonks and Remus more than myself and any desire or lack thereof to have children at this exact moment."

Harry frowned as he thought that over. It was no secret that Hermione didn't want kids right now. But they had a few years yet before children so he wasn't really worried about that. "Tonks and Remus?"

She leaned forward and made a face as she opened her mouth. She closed it again before finally finding her words. "Is it stupid to say that I'm worried they'd be angry if Teddy called us 'mummy' and 'daddy?' I mean… they're his parents. Were his parents. They died fighting for the right of their child to have a better life. I don't want to erase that."

Harry smiled at her. He reached across the table and took her hand. Neither of them noticed the cameras flashing. "Hermione. We will never replace Teddy's parents. Andy and I have pictures of the both of them and Teddy looks at them every night before bed. He knows their names and stories about them and he knows they're his parents… I'm sure he won't understand it all until he's a bit older, but he knows. Us getting married and taking him in, it won't change that. I'm still going to show him the photo album every night, and I'm still going to decorate his room with photos of his parents and the rest of his family."

Hermione's shoulders visibly relaxed at his words. "Thank you."

He raised her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. "Any time, love." His grin widened and he added, "Who knew I could be the smart, responsible one?"

She snorted and slipped her hand from his. "Okay, don't get carried away, Potter."

He laughed as she rolled her eyes. "I was right and properly wise right there," he insisted, not at all serious.

"And then it ended," she retorted quickly. "Gone," her hand waved in the air, "like it never happened. Such a beautiful moment, maybe you can ask the paparazzi for a picture so you'll never forget it."

"You say that like it'll never happen again."

Hermione raised a telling eyebrow. Harry grinned charmingly.

The rest of the dinner passed pleasantly enough. Hermione was surprised to note she had in fact forgotten the presence of the paparazzi. As she climbed up the steps to her apartment door with Harry, she hoped that the vultures had gotten enough photos.

"Well," Harry said at length, "we survived."

"Barely," Hermione teased. She turned when they reached her door and leaned back against it. "The maître d' definitely wanted to kill us."

Harry chuckled under his breath. "You ordered muggle beer."

"I wanted to see if he would turn purple!"

His laugh broke through and loudly filled the empty hallway. "You almost succeeded."

She shook her head at him. "If you had just let me ask about the sriracha sauce -"

"-We would have probably been thrown out," he finished. "Chosen One or not."

Hermione covered her mouth with her hand as she giggled.

Harry smiled at her as he shook his head. Her curls were springing free from the updo, some of them already coming down to touch her shoulders. Her eyes were dark and her cheeks pink. She was…

"Radiant," he told her. "You're radiant."

Hermione bit her bottom lip. Her doe eyes looked up at him beneath full, dark lashes. She let out a huff of breath and surged forward.

Harry's eyes widened and his words were muffled beneath her lips on his. His hands quickly grasped her waist and at first he thought to push her away until her tongue swept across his lip and he realized. Hermione Granger was kissing him.

Harry immediately pulled her flush against him. He didn't even have the presence of mind to feel bad about his forwardness. Hermione moaned and her fingers threaded through the hair at the nape of his neck just the way he liked.

He pressed Hermione back against the wood of the door. Hermione raised her leg to hook around his calf. Harry wrapped a hand around her thigh and hiked her leg over his hip. Her breath caught. Her mouth opened a bit as she gasped. Harry's tongue slipped between her parted lips, sly and confident.

Hermione moaned again.

His lips broke from hers. He kissed his way across her jaw and down her neck. Hermione wriggled and shifted in his grasp as he licked and nibbled at the soft skin of her neck. His fingers tightened around her thigh.

Hermione's head fell back against the door. She grasped his arm for support, feeling wobbly with only one high heel to stand on. Her other hand remained tangled in Harry's wild hair. Merlin, it was soft.

"Harry," she whined breathlessly.

Harry immediately stilled. He jumped back a foot and put as much distance between them as he could without falling down the stairs. Hermione stumbled and had to grab the archway of the door to stop herself from collapsing.

"Harry?"

"Shit," he cursed. He ran his hands through his hair, making it stick up even worse than usual. "I'm so sorry."

"Sorry?"

"I - I shouldn't have…" His face turned red and he looked slightly tortured. Breathless and more than a little confused, Hermione didn't even know how to respond. "I need to go."

"Go?"

"I… yes." He turned and Hermione only managed to call his name before he was dashing down the stairs and disappeared.

She fell back against the door, eyes wide, breathless and ridiculously turned on. Hermione shook her head. "What the hell just happened?"

:::

Hermione stood at the edge of the massive property in her shorts and runners. She tapped her fingers against her crossed arms as the minutes ticked by. It was ridiculously hot and she had been waiting for what felt like ages.

Groaning, Hermione swept a hand across the back of her neck. It was slick with sweat. Her fingers lingered on the dark bruise at the crook of her neck. A tingle ran down her spine as she thought about Harry's lips on her, his hand on the skin of her thigh. Hermione hadn't got a wink of sleep last night. Thoughts of what could have happened had plagued her relentlessly. She needed new batteries for her vibrator and it was all Harry's fault.

A pop sounded behind her and she spun around to find Harry had finally arrived. She raised an eyebrow at him and crossed her arms. "You're late."

He winced. "Sorry."

She stared at him steadily. "We'll discuss it later, come on."

Harry sighed and followed her up the long drive to the tall manor. He kept his hands in his pockets and his head down. His entire aura radiated shame and upset. Hermione pursed her lips, determined to ignore whatever issue Harry was having because of what happened last night. It was a bloody kiss.

It was a bloody good kiss. What was he so ashamed about?

"Are there lots of other people here?" he asked, tentatively.

Hermione drew in a deep breath and decided to let her annoyance go for the moment. "Yes," she finally supplied once she thought she could manage it without snapping, "a few at least."

Harry looked around at the massive property. There were endless pastures of neatly trimmed grass all around. "We'd never be able to handle upkeep on this."

Hermione wrinkled her nose. "Not without a house elf, at least," she agreed.

"The place is less posh, though," he admitted reluctantly. The manor was Tudor style with white walls and dark wood beams. They stopped at the front step and simultaneously looked up, up, up. "But still massive," Harry sighed.

They stepped through the open front door and into the massive foyer. The beans that structured and supported the home could be seen from within as well. The walls were all beautifully painted a soft off white colour. It was tastefully decorated in modern and classy furniture.

Harry raised an unimpressed brow. "Teddy would turn these walls into his very own painting canvas."

Hermione laughed despite herself. Teddy did have a tendency to paint on the walls, floor, and once on Andy's bed comforter. "Come on," she nodded towards the stairwell. "How many times do you think we'll find the master suite this time?"

Harry nodded decisively, "Six." Hermione snorted. They smiled falsely at the other couples they encountered as they made their way through the house. "The realtor you talked with suggested this property?"

Hermione grimaced at his tone. "I tried, honestly I did."

"Can we please throw in the towel and go to a muggle realtor?"

They stopped inside a bedroom done up in an eggshell blue. Hermione sighed audibly. "I want a place for Teddy when he moves in."

He shrugged. "We want property and privacy. In magical terms, we want an estate."

"The Weasley's don't have an estate!" Hermione automatically protested.

"Don't they? They may not have a manor, but they've got property big enough for one." Before Hermione could respond, Harry quickly added, "And short of buying an empty plot of land and building our own house… it's just not going to happen. Not in the magical world at… what is that?"

Hermione turned from the view out the window and to her best friend. She raised an eyebrow. "What's what?"

"That?" Harry pointed at her neck.

Hermione raised a hand and touched the dark bruise. She gave him a look. "As if you don't know."

Harry's brows drew together. He looked confused and frustrated. "Why haven't you gotten rid of it?" he questioned harshly.

Hermione blinked owlishly. Slowly, she asked, "Do you want me to?"

"No! Yes!" He shook his head. "That's not the point."

"What's the point?" Clearly, she was missing it.

"Aren't you upset?" he asked instead of answering.

Hermione slowly shook her head, still trying to puzzle out what in the world was wrong with her best friend. "Why would I be upset?" She shrugged.

"It's not okay," he admitted earnestly. "I - I marked you."

His voice sounded so horrified that Hermione knew she couldn't laugh. Marked? "It's a hickey, Harry. I enjoyed it." The distinct set of his jaw finally clicked in Hermione's mind. He thought he had done something wrong. That realization didn't exactly absolve Hermione of her perturbation. "You haven't done anything wrong," she insisted.

Harry didn't respond. His eyes bored into the curve of her neck. Hermione's hickey felt like a flaming neon sign. "Harry…" she started.

"Nevermind," Harry dismissed quickly. He turned to leave.

"I think we need to talk about this," Hermione protested, hot on his heels.

"Frankly, Hermione," he replied flatly, without turning around, "I don't want to."

Hermione's eyes narrowed. She whipped her wand out and the door slammed shut. She warded it before Harry could blink. He stopped and turned on his heel to glare at her. She smirked triumphantly back.

"Hermione…" he warned.

"Didn't you and Ginny have sex?" she asked abruptly.

Harry's eyes shot wide. "Hermione!"

She continued on as if he hadn't spoken."Because hickeys aren't exactly risque. It's just snogging and light petting."

Harry's face was bright red. "I get it, Hermione," he ground out between clenched teeth.

Hermione fought hard not to smile. "Why are you so upset?"

"Because I don't know how to do this!" Harry exploded. Hermione stilled, not having expected the outburst. "I have no fucking idea how to do any of that around you! I don't like people touching me," he ranted as he paced, "and no one ever tries to much really. Only you." He paused when he came to that realization. He turned to her. "You're… you're the only person I've ever been comfortable with physically and…" He gestured, at a loss for words.

Hermione didn't pretend to understand. She wasn't entirely sure how they had gotten here from 'hickey' and 'marked you,' but she was willing to try and figure it out. "But you had sex with Ginny," she insisted. His reticence to confirm before suddenly had her on edge.

"Not often," he admitted quietly.

She blinked. "I don't understand." And she didn't. Sex was a healthy part of every relationship. For Hermione, it was a big part of the relationship. Even in her less serious relationships, sex had been frequent and important.

He shrugged. "She was… distant. A lot. When we did have sex it was… pretty much the only time I ever got any sort of closeness with her, which in hindsight was probably a bit deliberate on her part. She can be a bit manipulative." Harry winced and ran a hand through his hair. His cheeks were pink and she was absolutely positive that Harry had not meant to reveal all that he had.

Hermione's hands curled into fists. She closed her eyes and took a long, deep breath. In through her nose and out through her mouth. She did it again. "A bit?" she seethed. The deep breaths had not helped. "A bit manipulative? Harry, you just admitted to me the woman you almost married was at one point withholding physical touch from you so you'd be more dependent when she did give it to you and you call that a bit manipulative?" Her eyes widened and she gestured aggressively as she shouted, "That's fucking psychotic!"

"Hermione…" he placated weakly.

Hermione spun away from him and began pacing. Suddenly, it all made a lot of sense to her. Harry was always physically affectionate with her. There were times when she'd thought they'd crossed a line or two. But he'd never done anything truly inappropriate and neither of them had said anything and… she was the only one he was getting physical affection from. Besides family hugs at the Burrow and cuddling with Teddy… Hermione was it. "I'm going to kill her." Harry groaned. "How dare she?"

"It's not a big deal."

She whirled around and shot him a death glare. "Not a big deal? You freaked out that you'd possibly given me a hickey. What did she say to you to make you think that was a bad thing?" What else had she told him? "It's not bad! It's perfectly natural. It's natural and okay to want to hold someone and be held in return."

"I know that!" Harry shouted.

"But you don't know how to ask for it…" Hermione realized. "…to go about getting it. How would you? Ginny is your only experience in sex and she…" She shook her head. She couldn't say it. Harry would likely not respond well if Hermione did. "I… we're leaving." Hermione waved her wand and the wards fell. She stormed past him.

"Leaving?" Harry turned and followed her. "But the house?"

"Fuck the house!" she shouted as a couple passed by them. Hermione didn't stop. Harry apologized and raced after her. "We weren't going to bloody get it anyway. Come on."

He looked around as they made it out the front door. "Where are we going?"

"Home." The second they passed the property line, Hermione grabbed his hand and disapparated.

Harry shook his head when they landed in her living room. He didn't have time to regain his footing before Hermione pushed him onto the couch. "Oi!" He gave her a dark glare that was immediately wiped away when Hermione took off her shirt. His eyes widened. "Hermione!"

She slipped a knee on the couch and plopped down on his lap. Her hands fell to his shoulders and she pushed him back when he tried to get up. "Stay," she instructed.

Harry blinked quickly and looked away from her chest. "What are you doing?"

"We're going to have a discussion."

He rubbed his brow. "Can't clothes be involved?" She was just wearing a skimpy little lace bra that was far more see through than it ought to have been. It couldn't have provided much support. He almost opened his mouth to ask when he remembered how completely inappropriate that would be.

"What's wrong?"

He rolled his eyes. "Besides the fact that you're not wearing a shirt?"

"Harry," she whispered softly and the sound of it clawed at Harry's heart, "please talk to me."

He let out a huff of breath and reluctantly revealed, "Ginny hated it when I left hickeys on her."

Hermione's head tilted. "And you thought I would too?"

He shrugged and looked down. He focused on the tanned, smooth skin of her abdomen. "She left me with the impression that no girl wanted a brand on her like he owned her or something."

"Okay, putting Ginny's twisted and hypocritical opinions aside - you freaked out." Harry focused on a dark beauty mark on the left side of Hermione's ribcage. Only an inch below was the puckered and waxy line of her scar from the Department of Mysteries. "You know I'd never get angry at you for something as simple as a hickey. Honestly, I - I enjoyed it," she revealed with a faint blush.

Harry did not notice the way the blush flushed down her her neck to the tops of her breasts. "You did?"

Hermione made a face. "You couldn't tell?"

Harry's thumbs rubbed slow circles onto her inner thighs. He was clearly lost in thought and Hermione tried desperately not to shift on his lap. Merlin, he really needed to stop doing that. "I've never slept with anyone else besides Ginny. I'm not entirely sure how to go about this. I know with Ginny, you know? I know what's allowed and not allowed."

Allowed? Hermione's mind reeled at the implications of that word alone. She decided to ignore it for the time being. Now was too soon to get into the mess that was Harry's relationship with Ginny.

"That's what communication is for," Hermione said instead. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have just kissed you last night. We need to talk about this first. I blame you, you're too charming and pretty to look at."

"Pretty," he huffed disbelieving.

Hermione hummed and smiled. "I really want to sit on your face."

He choked out a laugh and exclaimed, "Hermione!"

"It's true," she insisted. "Honesty is important."

"A little less honesty, please."

She smiled at him. "You don't really mean that." He didn't agree but he certainly didn't disagree and that was more telling than anything at all. "Did you never take charge before?" Harry looked down at that beauty mark again. It was safer than responding. "She didn't like that, did she?"

He looked tortured for a moment, grasping for words to explain. "I don't want to force you into a sexual situation when you're not in the mood."

"Okay, first off, I was certainly in the mood. I was ready to rip your clothes off and have my wicked way with you out there in the bloody hallway." He blushed bright red and Hermione pretended not to notice him shift beneath her as another part of his body reacted to her words. She smiled but didn't comment, for which Harry was silently grateful. "Secondly," she continued more softly, "there's a difference between taking charge and acting without consent, okay?"

"I know that," he responded weakly. And she believed that on some level he did. He was a healer after all. He knew more about the clinical aspects of sex and the human body than the average person. But knowing something and having the confidence to put it into practice were two very different things.

She wanted to tell him Ginny was horrible and terrible and all wrong. She wanted to say that the manipulative bitch had been using him and moulding him to be dependent on her so he wouldn't ever leave. She wanted to tell him that sex was freeing and fun and he should just let go. But those were things she knew he wouldn't truly believe until he experienced it himself. Hermione knew Harry better than anyone in the world and she knew what he really needed to hear.

"You have my consent, Harry," she quietly told him. "You can kiss me. You can leave hickeys on me. If I don't want you to do something, I will tell you. But I expect the same in return. If you don't want to have sex, you need to tell me, okay? I don't want to hurt you, just as much as you don't want to hurt me."

Harry's brows drew together. His eyes flickered up to meet hers. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," she replied without a breath of hesitation. "Which is why I think we need to have sex before the wedding."

Harry's mind stuttered to halt. He blinked rapidly. "What?"

"That day is going to hectic enough," she reasoned with a little shrug. "I don't want the added pressure of you freaking out about how sex is going to work between us."

He hated to admit it, but she was right. His fingers tightened around her thighs as he took in a long, deep breath. He opened his eyes again. "When?"

"That's up to you."

"What?" he reiterated. She really needed to stop throwing him these curve balls. His heart couldn't take much more.

"I'll follow your lead."

"Hermione…"

She rolled her eyes. "Don't sound so upset. I've literally just given you a free 'sex anytime you want' card and you look like I just kicked your puppy. Harry, calm down."

"What if you don't want to have sex?"

"I always - literally always - want to have sex."

Harry laughed despite himself.

"Now… if you're up for it," he rolled his eyes at the terrible innuendo, "what do you say about making this hickey feel a bit less lonely?"

Harry's eyes went wide. His breath shallowed. "… Okay."

She didn't move. Her golden-brown eyes stared unwaveringly into his green ones. She was waiting for him to make the first move. She expected - no, she hoped he would take charge. The difference was very important to Harry, he realized. Expectation versus hope - it was want.

Harry leaned closer. He could feel his heart pounding inside his chest. He wanted to kiss her so badly. His entire body was hot. His magic surrounded both of them a cocoon of warmth and power.

He didn't close the distance. He sat there, on the precipice of everything he'd ever wanted and realized he couldn't take it. It was crushing. Harry wanted to kiss her. He wanted nothing more than to kiss Hermione right there and then. But the pain and fear in his heart were too great.

Hermione stroked her thumb across his bottom lip and whispered, "Do you… do you remember fifth year?"

Harry blushed as well. "I thought you'd forgotten… you know… too much firewhiskey."

"Oh, there was definitely too much firewhiskey…" They both laughed at that. "But I didn't forget. It was… the firelight and the mistletoe. Harry… it was little school girl Hermione Granger's dream come true." Her fingers curled into the hair at the nape of his neck and her lips brushed against his own. Harry's breath caught. His eyes were completely captivated by her every move. "Kissing you last night…" She looked up from beneath her lashes. "You're just as good at it as I remembered."

Harry swallowed audibly.

Breathlessly, Hermione whispered, "Please…?"

And that was it. Hermione's lips were as soft as flower petals. He wound a hand into her pinned up hair and pulled it free. The curls fell down around them in a waterfall of chocolate tones. Her scent of tulips was overpowering.

The kiss was intense but chaste. Hermione didn't push to deepen the it at all. Harry tangled his fingers in her curls. In an act of what he felt was Gryffindor bravery, he traced his tongue along the seam of her lips. Hermione immediately and eagerly parted her lips.

She moaned as he explored her mouth. Harry couldn't catch his breath. His heart was going so fast he was fairly positive it was about to stop at any moment. His hand gripped her hip tightly. Hermione's arms wound around his neck and she shifted against his lap.

Harry groaned at the friction. He ground his hips up against her. Hermione broke the kiss with a gasp. Her eyes fell shut as Harry laved attention on her neck like the night before. A slow, steady rhythm worked up between the two of them. Harry savoured every last one of Hermione's soft, breathy moans.

His hand curled around the curve of her arse and pushed her down on an upwards thrust.

"Harry," she gasped. And this time, the sound of his own name didn't freak him out. Harry licked and bit his way along her collarbone and to the tops of her breasts. Her bra strap slipped from her shoulder. The lacey fabric of her bra gaped and Harry immediately attacked the exposed skin.

Hermione's fingers gripped Harry's shoulders. Her chest heaved and she squeezed her eyes shut. Merlin, she needed more. He was killing her, slowly killing her in the best way possible. Harry's fingers trailed up her spine. He fingered the clasp of her bra and Hermione's breath stuttered.

A phone rang.

Hermione gasped and pulled back. Harry's eyes widened. Their eyes met as they both stilled. The phone rang again.

Hermione jumped off of Harry and raced to the phone mounted on the wall in the kitchen. "Hello?" she answered, breathless and red in the face.

Harry took off his glasses. He rubbed a hand across his face and tried to calm his racing heart.

"What? No, I'm fine. Grams," Hermione scolded the name. She fixed the strap of her bra and glanced at Harry. Her face was still bright red. "Yes, Harry is here." Her eyes widened. "Grams!"

Harry turned and raised his eyebrows at her. He slipped his glasses back on.

Hermione leaned her forehead against the wall. She looked miserable and horribly embarrassed. "Lunch?" Her eyes widened and she shot up straight. "No, we have plans." She rolled her eyes. "Not that kind of plans. Grams, I will hex you." She covered the mouth of the phone and asked him, "What time is it?"

Harry checked his watch. "Nearly noon."

Hermione sighed in relief. "No, Grams. We have a few appointments. Would you still be in London for dinner?" She raised an eyebrow at Harry. He nodded his agreement. "Okay, wonderful. We'll see you then." Her eyes shot wide. "Grams!" Hermione groaned and hung up the phone.

"Dare I ask?"

She sighed and slipped onto the couch beside him. Her arm rested along the back of the couch and her knee pressed against his thigh. "She asked if we were having sex." Harry couldn't stop the boyish chuckle that erupted from him then, even if he wanted. She smacked his arm. "It's not funny."

"Considering…" he dragged out the word and looked at her significantly. "I think it's rather hilarious."

She narrowed her eyes. "Yes, keep laughing. I'll leave you to field the numerous questions on when we'll be expecting."

"Expecting?"

Hermione raised her eyebrows and looked at him pointedly.

His eyes widened when it finally clicked. "Ah…"

"Yes."

He scratched his ear. "Do we have to-"

"-Yes."

He nodded. "Put your clothes on, we have to go to the daycares in a bit."

Hermione stood and grabbed her t-shirt from where she'd tossed it onto the floor earlier. "About earlier."

"Regretting it already?" he questioned in a self-deprecating manner. He got to his feet, his eyes on the floor.

"Wondering how long I'll have to wait before you'll kiss me again."

Harry looked up. She smiled sweetly. Slowly, Harry took a step forward. He gently cupped her jaw. He stared into her eyes for a long moment before pressing a gentle kiss to her lips. She clutched at his shirt and pulled him closer when he moved to break the kiss.

Harry chuckled lowly and allowed the kiss for a moment longer before stepping back. "Clothes. On."

Hermione pouted.

Harry shook his head and narrowed his eyes. "Don't," he warned. "Shirt. Now." She sighed and did as she was told. He was fairly positive she muttered something along the lines of 'no fun' while she did.

Harry wrapped her in his arms as he prepared to disapparate. He paused. Hermione looked up at him expectantly. "Thank you," he whispered. "I've been worried about this… but I didn't really know how to talk about it. Neville tried to help but… you know what I'm saying even when I'm not saying anything at all."

Hermione stretched up onto her toes and pressed a kiss to his chin. "Well, as amazing as I am… can I put in a request for you to use more words because this understanding silent communication thing is fairly tiring."

Harry chuckled under his breath. He nodded. "I'll take it under consideration."

She smiled brightly. "Let's go."

:::

The daycares were all big, colourful, and filled with magical children of all ages. Harry and Hermione were given private tours of each facility, looking in on all the play rooms, the napping area, and even the kitchens.

"This one," Hermione claimed the moment she realized that the house elves in the kitchen received pay.

"They're getting paid with candy," Harry argued with an amused roll of his eyes.

Hermione shrugged. "That's what the house elves requested to have as payment through the new House Elf Welfare and Careness Bill. And this place is actually following those laws. They look happy and healthy and like they're being treated very well."

"Yes, but as we're sending our child here, how about we think about that?"

She wrinkled her nose at him. "All the places look the same. I will admit, the second place had more books on offer."

Harry nodded. "We'll donate a library." She narrowed her eyes at him as she tried to figure out if that was sarcasm or a genuine offer. Harry had a tendency to be a bit extravagant with money. "Although," he continued and guided her over to a window that looked into a room filled with cribs, "I will admit this is why I like it best."

"The nursery?"

He shrugged and gave a nod. "The law asks for a kid in the next five years. Teddy will still be out of school even if we wait until the fifth year."

"Which we will," Hermione cut in.

"No arguments here," Harry agreed. "But it'd be nice to have the both of them at the same place."

"You don't think Teddy will be able to go to muggle school by that time?" The magical world didn't provide schooling for children under 11. The expectation was that a parent - the mother - would look after and teach the child their basics. Both Harry and Hermione agreed that they wouldn't ask the other to take unnecessary time off. Both had gone to muggle schools and knew they wanted to send their children there as well. The only problem was that Teddy didn't have a handle on his metamorphmagus abilities yet.

"I don't know. Everyone learns at a different rate. Besides, if he can't, they do teach basic numbers and alphabet here. That'll tie us over until we figure out a solution if he can't keep a handle on it."

Hermione nodded. "Alright… that's a good plan. Okay. This place it is," she agreed with a bright smile.

Harry wrapped an arm around her waist. "Perfect. Well, at least we have something figured out."

"About as much as we always did when we're about to head into a crazy situation," Hermione quipped. "We even have a crazy person in a government position trying to manipulate our lives."

Harry smiled at the babies in their cribs as they cooed and cried. "How can you think about evil government plots and make not so subtle references to Professor Dumbledore while there are adorable little babies to look at?" He raised a finger and waved as he made a silly face.

Hermione rolled her eyes and smiled fondly. A thought occurred to her rather suddenly and her cheeks turned pink. She turned to face him fully and crossed her arms. "Babies." Harry looked at her sidelong. "We need to… prevent them."

His eyes widened. "Right."

"So… I'm not on anything right now." Harry raised his eyebrows. "I just take a contraception potion the day of or ask my partner to use the spell and…" She paused as Harry's eyes grew wide and his cheeks went pink as well. "So, you can do the spell…" When Harry didn't say anything, she continued. "Or, it's expensive, but I can go on the monthly potion and…"

"No. That's fine. That works."

"Yeah?"

"If you're okay with it."

She nodded quickly. They both turned back to the nursery and let out a long breath. It amused Hermione how a conversation on contraception had been infinitely more embarrassing than the one they'd had about sex. Leave it to her and Harry to be absolutely awkward about the simpler things in life.


I'm very on the fence about the revelations of Harry and Ginny's relationship in this one. It was never planned. When I was writing the story, it sort of just came out and I ran with it. If it annoys you, breathe easily that it won't be overtly talked about again. Maybe small references. For the most part, it's supposed to explain why Harry never left Ginny. It also shows some of those leftover effects of having his entire life manipulated by others. It's something he's used to (unfortunately). When something is familiar, it's hard to walk away, even when you know that thing is bad for you - and that's coming from someone with experience in emotionally abusive relationships. You really do always expect it to get better. And it's not until you've had real distance that you finally see all the horrible things that have been going on.

Anyways, I do hope you enjoyed it. One more chapter and then it's the wedding! xx