Ginny stood behind the practice, waiting for the sound of Draco Apparating to come and get her. They had to be even more discrete now, mostly due to what Narcissa had planted in their minds, and Ginny could not risk being seen just standing there…alone…in a fancy dress…and heels…obviously waiting for someone. She shivered as a cool spring breeze ruffled the bottom of her dress and blew her hair out. Where was he? She suddenly heard the familiar swishing noise followed by a soft thud. She held her breath for a moment, wanting him to say something first. In a matter of seconds, her wish came true.

"Gin?"

"I'm here."

She took a step out from behind the practice and watched as Draco's eyes widened and his jaw dropped. He opened and closed his mouth like an idiot and Ginny couldn't help but giggle. She slowly turned so he could see her from every angle.

"I'm guessing by your reaction that you like it?"'

Draco blushed hard and shoved his hands into the pockets of his slacks.

"Like it?" He snorted. "You look bloody stunning. I love it."

Ginny smiled hard and stepped foreword, closing the gap between them. She reached foreword and cupped his face with her hands, bringing his lips to hers in a searing kiss. His hands immediately shot out of his pockets and encircled her waste, causing her to be flush against him. Ginny smiled against her boyfriends lips and pulled away from him, much to his displeasure.

"We really shouldn't keep your mother waiting, Draco. Besides, we shouldn't be out in the open like this for so long."

Draco frowned. "You're right, you're right." He pulled away from her and held out his arm, letting Ginny grab the crook of his elbow. "Ready to meet my mum?"

Ginny sighed deeply. "Ready as I'll ever be."

"Then off to Malfoy Manor we go."

And in the blink of an eye, they disappeared from Diagon Alley.

o.O.o

Draco gave Ginny's hand a tight squeeze as he opened the large oak doors that led into the front hall of the Manor. Ginny was immediately taken aback at the size of the house. Sure, she had always known that Draco had money, and lots of it, but she had no idea what kind of mansion he lived in. It was absolutely huge and as soon as she stepped inside the front door, she realized that it was even grander on the inside. The furniture and decorations were lavish and exquisitely made. There were large paintings on the walls that were obviously done by master artists and crystal vases on almost every table that held bright and blooming flowers. Ginny looked around in awe. It was purely spectacular. She couldn't even imagine living in a house like this. Draco watched her with awe as she took in the Manor. She had such a look of fascination on her face that was the look of a young child in a candy store. He couldn't help but beam at her curiosity. It was so innocent that it was…well…attractive. He pulled her through the house, showing her room after room, stopping to point out a photograph or a trinket that was special. Ginny was utterly in love with the library the second he showed her the rows upon rows of books and tales. She couldn't help but think about the field day that Hermione would have in there if she was given the chance. They finally reached the dinning room to find Narcissa putting a dish of steaming vegetables on the table. Ginny's heart started racing the second she made eye contact with Draco's mother. She was stunning beautiful, but intimidating as Hell. Draco lightly pushed Ginny foreword as Narcissa glided towards the pair. She stuck out her hand which Ginny shook firmly.

"Hello Ginny. Draco has told me so much about you."

Ginny laughed nervously. "Nice to finally meet you. All good things I hope."

"Of course, of course. Shall we eat now?"

Draco pulled out his mother's chair and had her sit down before doing the same thing to Ginny. Narcissa sat at the head of the table with Ginny and Draco on either side of her. At first, Ginny had trouble forming words and sentences properly because of how nervous she was, but as the dinner went on, she found that conversing with Mrs. Malfoy was easier than she thought.

"So, Ginny, what do you want to do when you're a little bit older? What job path do you want to pursue?"

"Well, actually, the coach of the Holyhead Harpies is interested in me becoming a Chaser for the team."

"Wow! That is quite the opportunity! I actually do remember, from coming to Draco's matches at the school, that you were quite the player."

"Thank you. Yeah, Quidditch is something that runs in the family. My older brother Charlie use to be the Gryffindor Seeker, Fred and George were both Beaters for the team, and Ron was a Keeper. It's sort of a family affair."

As his mother and Ginny continued to make small talk, Draco found himself beaming. These were the two most important women in his life and they were getting along effortlessly. He couldn't help but feel so lucky. When dessert came, however, the conversation turned from being light hearted, to very deep indeed. The dark chocolate pudding with strawberry slivers came, and it was like the mood shifted. Narcissa cleared her throat and got right down to business.

"Ginny, how do you feel about my son?"

She choked a little bit on the pudding. "In what ways?"

"Romantically. You are in a relationship with him…"

"Oh, yes, right. I care for your son very deeply Mrs. Malfoy. I think we have a very strong connection because of how we helped each other."

"You two started to bond through therapy, am I correct?"

"Correct."

"Why were you there in the first place?"

Ginny's stomach dropped. How was she supposed to tell her that she use to be an alcoholic? Would she forbid her from seeing Draco after she told her? How would she react? Ginny swallowed hard.

"Well, as you probably know, I lost my brother, Fred, in the battle. It was particularly hard on me and I would have frequent and absolutely horrid panic attacks. They would control my life. And…the only way I could control them…was…well…" She nervously rubbed her hands together. "through drinking."

"Liquor?"

"Yes."

"So, would you consider yourself an alcoholic?"

"Well, I'm not anymore. I've been sober for almost a year now. But when it was happening, yes, I would have considered myself an alcoholic."

Her voice got very quiet at the end of the sentence. She was really insecure when it came to the subject of her drinking. She was always so ashamed of it. She felt Draco lightly tap her leg with his foot. He was there for her; she had to remember that.

"And, correct me if I'm mistaken, but didn't you use to date Harry Potter?"

Ginny could feel the beads of sweat forming as the questions became more and more personal. This was pure torture.

"I did."

"Why did you end things with him?"

"Well, we weren't healthy anymore. There was a lot of yelling and screaming. He was always gone on Auror missions. Then, he…well he slapped me. That was the last straw for me. I left him. Draco was there to help me heal."

"Well no one deserves to go through something like that. I'm sorry dear."

"Thank you. Draco's really made my life so much better though. He showed me how to laugh again."

"And he's not just a rebound to make Harry jealous?"

Ginny's jaw dropped at the question. "W-what? Of…of course not! Mrs. Malfoy, I love your son. I am in love with him. I would never ever use him like that, I promise you. Harry doesn't even know that we're together."

Ginny couldn't even believe that she had just asked that. She looked over at Draco to see the obvious shock on his face as well. He was as pale as his platinum blonde hair. He leaned foreword towards his mother.

"Mum, I know that I'm your son, and that you just want what's best for me but you need to realize that Ginny and I really do love each other. She's not going to hurt me and I'm not going to hurt her."

Narcissa didn't say anything for a while. There was a palpable awkwardness in the air. She dabbed her mouth with a napkin before saying her final word on the situation.

"Just from talking to you tonight, Ginny, I can tell that you are an amazing girl. You are charming, sweet, intelligent, beautiful…I love that Draco has finally found someone that compliments him so well. That being said, I will do everything in my power to protect the both of you so you can keep seeing each other."

Ginny couldn't help but beam at the older witch. "Thank you so much Mrs. Malfoy! It really means so much to me to have your approval!" Ginny and Narcissa stood up from the table and hugged each other. Draco stood up as well, his entire being filled with happiness. This was, in all honestly, the most perfect outcome that he had prayed for. It felt, in that moment in time, that nothing bad would ever happen to him and Ginny.

Boy was he wrong.