The ceremony was unbelievably beautiful. Luna went all out in her typical loony fashion, and Ginny had no doubt that her dress and veil would make front page of at least a few of the papers in the morning. George looked considerably paler than when she had seen him at the shop just two days before. For a moment she wondered if he had made the mistake of testing one of their developmental products too close to the wedding, but as the ceremony continued, Ginny realized it was just old fashioned nerves. Which was silly really, as he was already as committed as it could get. After being with Luna for five years and having a two year old daughter, the wedding was more of a family mandated formality than anything else.

After the ceremony, they dispersed for pictures, and Ginny politely ignored her mother's whispered prying as they stood for one family portrait after another. A trip to St. Mungo's was almost required when the children gathered for their group photo, but luckily the gnome Ron and Ginny had snuck in was discovered by Bill just before he could cause any trouble, and they gave him the heave ho for old time's sake. Ginny practically dissolved into tears when it was her turn for a photo with George, Luna, and Roxanne. George caught her in an impromptu hug and she held on while she tried to keep her emotions in check. She knew George extended the hug for the same reason as their thoughts turned to Fred. Tears pricked her eyes then, and she had to pull away and excuse herself for some air.

She found an empty table away from the crowd and sat where she could watch the gathered group of family and close friends. It seemed every time they gathered for an event such as this one or a large holiday, the group grew bigger and bigger in numbers, but it never seemed to fill the void she felt when she remembered the one missing red head in the crowd. Thinking of her brother made her yearn for another drink, but she would be damned if she let herself get knackered at George's wedding and make a mess of things. Especially after what had happened at Percy's wedding. That story was still brought up when everyone wanted to embarrass her around the holidays, and she certainly wasn't going to add another similar story to this event.

She must have sent out a wave of loneliness, because her mother found her far too quickly. With a mug of firewhisky in hand, Molly sat down next to her and offered her the mug as a bit of a peace offering. Ginny gladly accepted it. "I remember when I used to have to charm this to look like butterbeer to sneak it into the house, and now here we are, my mum handing me a mug of it."

"You did what?"

"What? Nothing," she retorted quickly, gulping down a swig to shut her big mouth. She'd forgotten she'd never once been caught.

"So what's he like?" Molly asked, her eyes watching her son and her newest daughter-in-law dancing with their daughter.

"Who?"

"This mysterious boyfriend of yours that couldn't be bothered to join us today for this very special occasion."

Staring down into her mug, she studied her reflection off the surface of the liquid. "He's… different than what I thought I wanted," she confessed. "Growing up, I wanted the dangerous type. Not necessarily the bad boy, but someone who lived their life full of adventure and danger. Someone like Harry, at the time. But then I met him, and he's different than that. Don't get me wrong, he has a bit of a wild past," perhaps the understatement of a lifetime, "and he still has an edge to him that makes an appearance every once in a while, but he's a good man. And honest man."

"But Harry was those things too, dear."

And there it was. Ginny took another drink from her mug. Molly Weasley would perhaps never get over the fact that Harry Potter ended up with Hermione Granger, especially since Ginny was the one to dump Harry and not vice versa. Molly had always treated Harry like a son, and Ginny secretly thought her mother resented her for taking away that possibility and letting Harry marry Hermione instead of her.

"Harry and I are better off as friends, Mum. And I think, deep, deep down a part of him has always loved Hermione as more than just a friend. What Harry and I had was that young, first love type of love."

"So it's different with this one? This is the one you can see yourself settling down with? Starting a family with?"

This line of questioning almost made her wish she and her mother would just start arguing again. She felt much too young to make that kind of decision, and she wasn't ready to start planning the rest of her life at 23.

"I know George finally caved and got married, Mum, but that doesn't mean Ron or I am going to suddenly jump on board the wedding wagon. We've got plenty of time to figure out what we want."

"But you love him?"

"I like him," she replied. "We have fun together." The answer every mother wanted to hear from her only daughter. "I'm not ready to marry him, though."

"But what if you could find someone you wanted to marry, Ginny? What if I could help you find someone you love?"

"Oh, please don't start this again."

"You haven't even told us his name! You say you are going to bring him to the party and he doesn't show up. I just feel like you're inventing this boyfriend because I haven't set you up with the right kind of suitors."

"Mum."

"No, listen to me! I know it's tough out there, I remember what it was like before I met your father. But we know a lot of young gentlemen through your father's work, and-"

"Stop. Please, Mum, just stop. The truth is, I have been dating him for two years, ok? And I didn't want to tell you because I thought it would upset you, so I've played along and I've gone on these dates you've set up even though I knew it drove him crazy." Actually, they had turned it into a bit of a game that had been quite fun to play at first. Bringing out the jealous side of Draco Malfoy definitely made things more interesting when she returned from her dates.

"I'm tired of pretending like he doesn't exist because I don't think you'll approve. And in all honesty, if you got to know him, I know you would like him. He's a good man, Mum, which is why I wanted to bring him here today to finally meet you. But I think he's so worried about what it would mean to me if you didn't approve of him that he wouldn't come, because he didn't want to ruin George's wedding."

Her mother seemed caught up on the fact that she'd been dating him for the past two years, so Ginny charged along before the yelling started. "He's a healer at St. Mungo's. Really good at what he does, and exceptionally talented. He could have played Quidditch if he wanted, but he didn't want the fame. He's got a lot of skeletons in his closet that he's not proud of, but I think he's a better man for them, because they push him every day to strive to be a better person.

"And he's good to me, Mum. I was hesitant at first to date him," which was not exactly the truth. After all, she is the one who had set the ball rolling, though when they reached the point where they both admitted they were only hooking up exclusively with each other, she was the one that took some convincing to agree to keep it that way, "but I'm glad I did. I wouldn't give these past two years back, and I wouldn't trade a single day of it for a day back together with Harry." Again, not the complete truth. There had been some pretty nasty fights in which she wondered what the hell she was doing with him, but the make up afterward had – almost – made it worth it.

"You've got to let go of Harry Potter, Mum. He'll always be like family to us, but he's never going to be your son by marriage. He loves Hermione, and I don't love him."

"Oh, Ginevra, this isn't about Harry. I just want to make sure you are happy. Honest."

"Well I am. Honest," she mirrored the sentiment. "So he didn't make it to the wedding today. After what happened at Charlie's wedding, it's probably for the best anyway. I'll drag him along to the next family barbeque, and the boys can all beat the snot out of him then."

"Your brothers would never do that," Molly replied.

Ginny snorted as she took another drink from her mug. Perhaps her mother had blocked out twenty years of child raising, but Ginny certainly hadn't forgotten her childhood.

They sat in silence then, and Ginny had to admit it was nice being with her mother without bickering for a change. She wondered how long it would last.