Chapter Eleven
Harry awoke the next morning to a very severe hangover. Preceding his wrestling match, he had gone on to drinking like he never had before. Nobody had really noticed how much he drank until he tried to stand up and almost fell into the fire. Hermione had admonished him very sternly and Harry told her that he could get as drunk as he wanted so she better shut her overlarge mouth. She had slapped him across the face and immediately Apparated home.
Harry, I know you're drunk, but you shouldn't have said that to her," Ron said.
"Why should I even watch what I say? Why should anything matter to me? I'm just not going to care anymore, because when I do, people die for it. Sirius died because of me. Because I cared for him."
"You're starting to sound like you used to in Hogwarts, Harry. You know that wasn't your fault. Sirius died because he cared about you. He wanted you to live," Ron said gently and then made a move towards his friend to get him to sit down.
"Get away from me, Ron! I don't...need...you."
He then passed out and Ron picked him up and brought him to his bed.
Harry rolled over in bed and groaned in pain. A gentle hand was put on his forehead and he stopped moving.
"I thought you knew that alcohol doesn't solve problems. It only makes things worse." Harry opened his eyes and found Ginny looking down on him. She had clearly woken up from him groaning. Her hair was mussed up and her eyes had a sleepy look in them.
"Hangover cure please."
"I don't know if you deserve it. You were quite rude last night to Ron and Hermione." Harry thought a few moments and then the memory came back to him again.
"Oh, that. I was drunk. Didn't know what I was saying."
"Horrible excuse, Harry. You know just as well as I that when people are drunk, they tend to say more of the truth than when they're sober."
"So...what's the problem. Everybody wants a truthful person."
"I think we'd rather hear the truth out of you when you're sober. You're much kinder about everything."
"All right. I'm sorry. Can you please give me a hangover cure. I'm dying here. And don't talk so loud, it makes my head throb." Ginny sighed and then leaned over to the bedside table and grabbed her wand. A moment later, Harry's head felt clear and there was no more pain.
"You're a miracle worker, Gin." He leaned in to kiss her but she pulled away and aimed her wand at his mouth. He then tasted mint in his mouth.
"That one is a favourite of yours isn't it?"
"It has to be used sometimes. Especially when your breath smells like that," she grinned. Harry rolled on top of her and blew a raspberry in her neck. Ginny's rich laughs filled the room and Harry smiled into her neck.
"I love that," he whispered.
"What?"
"Your laugh," he replied and then leaned in and kissed her deeply.
"Harry!" came a yell from the door. He moaned from frustration into Ginny's mouth but continued kissing her.
"Harry! Ron wants you at the Ministry, now!"
"You should go, Harry," said Ginny pulling away. Harry groaned and dropped his head onto her chest.
"But I don't want to leave you."
"Too bad. He obviously has something he needs to speak with you about." Harry rolled off of Ginny onto his back and put his hands behind his head.
"Yeah, I think I know what it's about."
"Really? Is it what you were speaking so secretly about last night?"
"I think so. I need to tell you about that."
"What is it?" Harry rolled onto his elbow and rested his other hand on Ginny's stomach.
"Don't get too mad at me."
"I can't promise that. What is it?"
"I told Ron that I wanted to go back as an auror." Ginny's face immediately fell and she seemed to be looking at Harry without really seeing him.
"What?" she finally asked, quietly.
"I'm going to be an auror again."
"That's what I thought you said. Harry...why? And what about Quidditch?"
"I have got to help them. I've got to do it for Sirius. And I'm just taking a break from Quidditch. I don't want to retire completely from it yet." Ginny sighed deeply.
"I know you feel like you have to, and I know I'm being a bit selfish here, but I don't want to worry about you anymore than I already do. The threat of you dying by a stray bludger is enough to give me an aneurysm. But the threat of you dying because of a Death Eater....that's even worse. I'll have a stroke. Harry....I don't want to lose you."
"You won't lose me, Ginny. They haven't gotten lucky before and they never will. You have to understand that I can't go on having them threaten me and everybody I care about. I want to have a family with you one of these days. I want children and I want children without the fear that Death Eaters will come out of nowhere one day and kill them or you. I couldn't live with that. I need them gone before we get married and have kids. And I can't be promised by the Ministry that the Death Eaters will be eradicated when they only have fifteen aurors at the Ministry. That won't help anything." Ginny sat up and put her back to Harry. Harry didn't know what else to say until she said something more so he laid and watched her back. They were silent for almost five minutes when Harry noticed her shoulders shaking. He got up and sat next to her.
"Gin?"
"It's too late, Harry."
"What is?" Ginny looked up at him with red eyes and a tear stained face. He felt his own throat choke up from the desperate look in her eyes and he wrapped his arms around her. She fell into them and started sobbing against his chest.
"Harry....I'm pregnant," she said between sobs. Harry froze from rubbing her back and stared wide eyed at the wall behind his bed.
"Preg...pregnant? But...but I thought.....I thought you were on birth control potion," he stuttered.
"I was, Harry!" she said irritated, as she pushed away from him. "It's not 100% effective. I thought you knew that."
"I don't know what I thought......How far along are you?"
"One month."
"What? How long have you known?" Ginny looked down at her hands with a guilty expression on her face.
"Two weeks," she said quietly.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Oh come on, Harry. You actually expected me to drop this on you after Sirius died? You're obviously still a bit unstable about it from that little show you put on last night, which is perfectly understandable since it's only been a week; I wasn't about to tell you right when it happened."
"But you knew a week before that!"
"I was still coming to terms with it, Harry. I was so shocked when I found out. I had been making sure that I took that potion on the right day, right time, every month. I didn't want to become pregnant anymore than you want me to be. But the difference between us is: I want this baby; you don't." With that she started crying again, so Harry wrapped her in a hug once more.
"Ginny, I'll admit, I'm not exactly happy that this was the time that you got pregnant. But...you should know that I want any baby that you and I made. I've always wanted to start a family with you...This is just a bit earlier than I anticipated." Ginny looked up at him with hope written across her face.
"You do want this?" Harry gave her a reassuring smile.
"Of course I do." A sob of relief escaped Ginny's throat and she buried her head in Harry's neck. "Don't get me wrong, Gin. I'm not placing any blame on you...It's just...I wish that Sirius could have known. He wanted this for me." Ginny looked up at him with a mischievous grin on her face.
"What?" Harry asked, curiously. She giggled in the back of her throat.
"He did know, Harry, and so does Remus. Remus has those werewolf senses and he's the one that told me. We were down in the kitchen with Sirius. To say the least...he was estatic; although he did scold me for not being more careful. I think he was mostly kidding though." Harry smiled.
"I'm just going to overlook the fact that you three knew and kept it from me. How did Remus tell you?"
"Oh, he's so calm about everything, you know. I walked into the kitchen and he was looking at me funny and so I asked him what was on his mind. And he just kind of looked at me for a moment before he went back to drinking his coffee, and now I quote, 'Oh, I was just wondering if you knew that you're two weeks pregnant?'
"I was so surprised, I just sat there and stuttered through anything that came to my mind. Sirius must have known that Remus could do that because he came up and hugged me right away. Then Remus told me that he could tell that I was pregnant since the first day, but he decided not to tell me right away. He is something." Harry nodded his head.
"He is."
"Oh, and Sirius told me that he wrote you a letter from when you first came back and that he added some more to it when he found out I was pregnant."
"He did? Where do you think he put it?"
"I don't know. I was wondering if you would have found it since you have all his things."
"Well, there is a lot. I may not find it for a long time." A knock came at the door for the second time that morning and Brian's voice came.
"Harry! Ron just called again. He wants you there now!"
"Tell him I'm coming." Ginny looked at him again with a pained look on her face. "Gin, I have to do this. Please, just say it's OK. Sirius was killed by Death Eaters, I just want to return the favour." Ginny shivered from the malice dripping from Harry's voice.
"You do know that he told me he would do anything to protect you? He said that he would when he found out I was pregnant. He didn't want our son or daughter to grow up without a father the same way you did. I was speaking with Sirius at Steve's the day before the picnic and he said he had a feeling that something would happen. I tried to talk him out of it, but he was set on staying close to you at all times."
"You knew he was going to risk his life for me?"
"Not exactly. I didn't know anybody was going to attempt to kill you. I mean, Remus and I knew that he'd try to risk his life for you whenever possible. He said that he owed his life to you since you got him away from Hogwarts when he was about to be given the Kiss in your third year."
"He could have just pushed me down."
"Then the curse would have hit somebody else in the way. He knew what he was doing." Harry swallowed hard and stood up.
"I need to take a shower. Then I'm going to see Ron."
"You're still going to do it?"
"I can't not do it. I have to." With that he walked out of the room and into the bathroom. Twenty minutes later, he was dressed again in his 'Harry' attire, except he chose not to grow his hair or put his scar on anymore. If somebody asked him about it, they'd have to be happy with no answer at all. The only thing that was his 'Harry' attire now was his eyes and glasses. He walked down to the kitchen and found Remus sitting at the kitchen table, drinking coffee and reading the morning paper.
"Good morning, Harry."
"Morning, Remus."
"Going to see Ron, today?"
"Yeah, how did you know?"
"Well, your door isn't the only one that Brian's voice drifted through this morning."
"Oh, sorry about that. I should tell him to just come in."
"It's okay. Something bothering you this morning, Harry?"
"Damn werewolf senses," he muttered as he poured himself a cup of coffee.
"It wouldn't take a werewolf to sense your mood. It does however, take a werewolf to hear what you just said." Harry laughed and sat down across from him.
"Anything interesting in the paper today?"
"Not really. Don't change the subject. Ginny told you, didn't she?"
"That she's pregnant? Yeah, she did. And she's not happy with my decision to become an auror again."
"That's what you're seeing Ron about?"
"Yeah."
"Well, I can see how she's not happy with that."
"Oh, thanks for taking her side," Harry said bitterly.
"Think about it, Harry. She's pregnant and she loves you. Of course she's not going to want you endangering your life everyday as an auror. Being a Quidditch player already gave her enough stress. You should hear her rant about bludgers and how they shouldn't be allowed in the game. It's not fun sitting next to her when you're playing." Harry smiled weakly.
"I can understand her point of view, but it seems like she doesn't even want to consider mine."
"It's crazy, Harry. That's why. Sirius wouldn't want you to do this again," said Ginny as she walked into the kitchen.
"I'll never know that now will I?" He drained his cup of coffee and stood up to kiss Ginny goodbye but she moved out of the way.
"If you want to kiss somebody goodbye, go find Hedwig," she said coldly. Harry bit his lip to keep from replying. He couldn't risk making things any worse than they already were. He put his cup down onto the counter, more loudly than was necessary and stormed out of the kitchen. A few minutes later, he was at the Ministry offices in London. He made his way up to Ron's office and without knocking, he entered. Ron looked up from his paperwork, startled. Harry took his cloak off, hung it up and sat down in a chair in front of Ron's desk.
"Okay, now that we got the dramatic entrance out of the way," Ron said sarcastically.
"Shove it, Weasley." Ron merely raised an eyebrow at his friend.
"It's so nice to know that you still need me."
"What are you on about?"
"Oh, well, last night you were kind enough to inform me that you didn't need me."
"Ron, I was drunk. Okay? I'm sorry. I said some nasty things to you and Hermione that I shouldn't have said. I didn't mean them. Because in fact, I do need you, Ron. I need you to be my friend. I need you to get me back in here so I can be an auror. But most of all, I need you to put aside that damn Weasley temper because I've had enough of it to last me a lifetime." Ron started laughing.
"Harry, I can promise you that I can be your friend. I can promise that I can you get back in here, because I did. You're in. But...I can't promise to put away this temper. It's mine, and I like it because it gets me what I want. Maybe it's Ginny that you should be asking to put away her Weasley temper. So...is she mad at you because of last night or did you tell her why you were coming here?"
"She was mad about last night, but I don't think she is anymore. And she is to say the least, extremely mad at me about why I came here. She says Sirius wouldn't have wanted me to do it because he was planning on risking his life for me because he didn't want my son or daughter growing up without a father the same way I did." Ron wrinkled his forehead in confusion.
"What do you mean? So...Sirius pretty much died for nothing because Ginny isn't pregnant." Harry looked down at his shoes.
"She is pregnant." Harry could feel the temper rising from Ron.
"What?! You're not even married yet and you two decide to get pregnant?"
"We didn't decide to, Ron! She was taking her birth control potion at the correct time every month. Apparently, it's not 100% effective."
"Any dolt should know that."
"Well, I didn't. Ginny did but she didn't do anything about it. Anyway...I didn't come here to speak about my problems. I came here because you wanted me to come here." Ron was still glaring murderously at Harry.
"Oh for...Ron, it's not like we haven't been planning on getting married in the first place."
"Excuse me?"
"Oh....I didn't tell you that?" Harry asked sheepishly.
"No."
"I proposed to her on the day that she went into the hospital. We were out celebrating it."
"Great of you to tell me. My best mate is marrying my sister but yet...neither one of them decide to inform me of this. Just damn fan-bloody-tastic."
"I'm sorry. I thought I did. I mean, I've had my mind on other things." Ron got up and walked to stand in front of Harry, who lowered down into his seat at the look Ron was giving him. He smiled all of a sudden and held out his hand to Harry. He tentatively took it and was rocketed out of his chair and into a very tight hug.
"You'll really be my brother now. Congratulations, Harry." Harry swallowed hard and looked at Ron questioningly.
"I thought you were going to kill me." Ron laughed.
"Yeah, right. And risk having Ginny come after me? Even if she is angry with you, I don't think she would hesitate to do some bodily damage to me if I hurt you. Now...we need to speak about you being an auror."
"Yeah, we do. Did I hear you right before? Did you say that I was in already?"
"Yes, you are in. I went in there and said, 'Harry Pott..' and they got all excited and told me to sign you on. Don't know how they knew that that was what I was going to say." Harry stared dumbly at Ron for a moment before coming to.
"Well...when do I start?"
"Now. I'll bring you to get your auror's robes and do the basic new employee thing. Oh and there is one more thing..." Harry looked at his friend's gleeful face apprehensively.
"What's that?"
"You've been promoted to my position!" Harry's mouth dropped open and he stared.
"What?! I'm sorry, I don't think I heard you correctly."
"No, you did. You're lieutenant now!"
"Um...and you're happy about this?"
"Couldn't be more so if I tried. I hate this position; it's more your area to be directing people like this."
"But...but...I don't want to take your job." Ron rolled his eyes.
"Harry, do not start doing the noble thing here. Because it'll really start to grate on my nerves. It's really no big deal; I'm being moved to the position underneath you." At Harry's doubtful look, Ron clapped a hand on his shoulder.
"Really, mate. It was my idea. It'll help you out because you'll have more freedom to do whatever you want; it'll help me out because I hate this position; it'll help this department out because it'll draw more aurors in. Everybody would just love to be under Harry Potter's direction. Trust me." Harry sighed deeply.
"Fine. But you're completely mental, you know that? Aren't you even taking a pay cut for this?"
"Actually, no. Rembers wouldn't hear of it. I'll be getting the same pay. Don't worry about it anymore. We're fine."
"Right...who's Rembers?"
"Oh, he's the new Head of Department. Paul Rembers. He's a good man; he just got promoted about a year ago when O'Reilly died."
"O'Reilly died?" Harry asked astonished. John O'Reilly had been the Head of Department when he had been an auror. They had been extremely good friends and Harry had never even thought to ask if he was still around.
"Oh yeah...I forgot to tell you. He was killed in a freak accident during a raid on a former Death Eaters house. Sorry, mate...I know how well you two got on." Harry sighed and shook his head.
"I can't think of that right now. Um...we were going to go get robes."
"Right...follow me." Harry followed Ron out of the office and through the sea of desks that were supposed to be all filled but with the lack of new aurors coming in, there were only about ten of them filled.
"We've got to do something about that," Harry muttered under his breath as he surveyed the large room. However, Ron heard him and furrowed his brow.
"That isn't everybody right now. There are about five or six out in the field right now. Should be back soon. But yes, we do need to do something about it." They continued walking in silence until they came to a door. Ron opened it up to reveal a small room filled with auror robes in all different sizes. They were either in a dark blue or black colour.
"They aren't dirty are they?" Harry asked while sniffing at a sleeve of one. Ron rolled his eyes.
"No, house-elves come in each week and clean every one. Except for the ones on our backs. Otherwise, we give our dirty robes to them."
"Is that new?"
"Yeah, don't know why they started doing that....But it is rather convenient. Well...I'll leave you to it. Pick out four different pairs. Two blue, two black. Of course you know that the blue is for the field. Black for the office. So, when you're done, go down the hall to where O'Reilly's office used to be and you can fill out the paperwork there. I'll be waiting there." Ron left the room and Harry was left to find his size in that would fit him best. After about ten minutes rummaging through them, he emerged from the room with all his robes. He ducked into a bathroom to change into some black robes and then made his way to where Ron had told him to go. He knocked on the door and heard Ron answer.
"Come in!" he called. Harry opened the door to find Ron sitting in front of a large desk, which sat a balding, black hair man. Harry started when he noticed that the man's eyes were a mismatched colour. The right eye was a light blue while the other was brown. The man stood up and Harry backed up a little at how intimidating he looked. He was very broad shouldered and very obviously worked out every night. But when he spoke, Harry calmed down a bit. His voice was very deep and jovial.
"Harry Potter! As I live and breathe!" He started forward and took Harry's hand in his own. "It's a great honour to meet you. I'm Paul Rembers, Head of Department."
"Nice to meet you," he replied politely.
"I don't know how Weasley got you to come join us again but I couldn't be happier for it. I wouldn't think that you would remember me from back when you were an auror, but I was just starting out about a month before the final battle. I don't think that there was one man or woman on the team that didn't look up to you in everything. I actually feel like I should be giving you my job!"
"Oh, I think I'm content with taking one man's job today. Maybe some other time though," Harry replied smiling good naturedly. Rembers' booming laugh filled the room.
"Yes, I didn't know what you'd think of that since I don't know you too well. But well...it was Weasley's idea and since it's a good idea in more than one way...I couldn't very well refuse the idea. Now, I think we have some paperwork to fill out and then you can move into a new office." Harry sat and soon he was filling out paper after paper. He was starting to get a feeling of nostalgia, with Ron sitting next to him. The only difference from the first time he did this was that O'Reilly sat behind the large oak desk. When the paperwork was almost finished, Ron was sent out of the office to gather everybody up into the large room of desks. And because the group of aurors who had been out in the field had just arrived.
"So, how does it feel to be coming back into the fold after so long?" asked Rembers when Harry finally set the quill down.
"A bit weird. Especially since I'm being promoted to lieutenant straight away. I didn't really expect that." Rembers nodded his head.
"I know how that feels. I never expected to be made Head of Department. So, what did the Cannons say about this?" Harry paused a moment.
"Er - well, I haven't exactly told them yet. I was going to tell them this morning, but right away when I woke up, I was told Ron had called me to get down here. I haven't had the chance yet." Rembers furrowed his brow.
"Well, you'll need to take care of that after we announce to everybody the change in their superiors." Ron stuck his head in the door and smiled broadly at the two.
"I've got them all riled up. They have no idea what's going on. I'll tell ya, that was fun!" he exclaimed. Harry shook his head and stood up as Rembers did the same.
"Let's go tell them, then. Weasley, I'll make the announcement that he's the new Lieutenant, but then I've got some business to take care of. You can take care of the questions after that." The three men walked out of the large office and down the hall to the room that the other aurors were waiting. Harry could hear nervous voices chatting with each other, wondering what the hell was going on. From the sound of it, Ron had done a good job riling them up. When they made their entrance, the room fell silent and fifteen aurors eyes were on them. It seemed that nobody recognised Harry for who he was: James Newark or Harry Potter. And if they did, they were doing a good job at hiding it.
"All right everybody...We've made a little change in Lieutenant this morning," boomed Rembers in his baritone voice. Confused mutterings started going around the small group of witches and wizards. One of them obviously couldn't hold her tongue because of the curiosity.
"What about Lieutenant Weasley?"
"It was his idea. He'll be in the position underneath Lieutenant Potter here."
"Potter?!" almost the whole group exclaimed at once.
"Yes, Potter," he growled back. "The one and only Harry Potter has joined us once again. And may I say that this sorry excuse for a Department will be looking better because of him. We may get some new recruits. Now, any other questions will be directed to Weasley and Lieutenant Potter. I have business to attend to." With that, the formidable Head of Department swept out of the room. All at once the whole room exploded in excited chatter. Harry surveyed the young faces sceptically. He didn't know how he would get anything done when it looked like most of them were fresh from Hogwarts. Granted, he shouldn't be prejudiced since he and Ron and been fresh from school and had been damn good aurors and respected all around. But still, it made Harry a bit nervous.
"Quiet!" ordered Ron. Harry started, it was quite rare to see him taking order in such a way. The group settled down and looked at the two men expectantly.
"There are some things that need to be said, that I for one, think need to be addressed. No matter how Lieutenant Potter may feel about them. Everybody here has a right to know since we are to work as a close knit group. And," he began in a threatening tone. "If anybody so much as says a word of this to anybody outside of this Department, I'm sure Potter will not hesitate to take drastic measures." By this time, everybody was hanging on his every word and Harry was looking at him with a confused expression. Ron looked at his friend and winked and then mouthed, 'Trust me.' Harry nodded his head and looked forward again.
"As some of you may or may not know, there is a man on the Chudley Cannons named James Newark, who plays the position of Seeker..."
"Ron! What are you doing?" asked Harry severely.
"They need to know. We need to work as a closely knit group and if they don't know why you are here, then we can't achieve that. They know everything, Harry." Harry sighed deeply.
"Fine, but make it quick. I've still got to go see Seamus and Dean about this."
"So, as I was saying...James Newark is an alias created by and for, none other than our own, Lieutenant Harry Potter." Shocked mutterings could be heard around the circle and the same witch who had spoken out before, spoke again.
"Lieutenant Potter is James Newark?"
"Yes, he is. It was his name in America when he left the wizarding world and when he came back, he kept it and didn't tell anybody besides a chosen few who he was. Not even I knew." Here Ron sent Harry an accusing look but then smiled roguishly. "But anyway, Harry started receiving threats from Death Eaters and was kidnapped as we all know. We were all working on that case. He obviously got back home and life went on for a few months, until last month when we were at a picnic in Las Angeles, California. Death Eaters followed us there and regrettably, killed Sirius Black, Harry's godfather...." Harry looked around and was surprised to find that nearly everybody there had tears in their eyes. But it was with a jolt that he remembered these people had worked with Sirius. Sirius had filled the position that Ron was now taking. Harry swallowed back tears and looked determinedly ahead.
"Because of this," Ron continued. "Harry has decided to come back as an auror and rid the earth of the scum bags, we like to call Death Eaters." A couple people whistled and everybody started clapping. Harry smiled slightly at Ron who clapped him on the shoulder.
"See, it's going to be all right, mate," he said smiling happily. Harry nodded his head.
"I think it will be, Ron."
Soon after Ron's little speech to the rest of the aurors, Harry went down to the Chudley Cannons office and told Dean and Seamus his news. They were sad that they would have to use the reserve seeker, but they also said that they would hold the spot for him as long as it took him.
They made up a story to tell the press. James Newark's sister had gone ill in the States and he would be taking leave for an indeterminate amount of time. That was all that would be said on the situation. The press would be free to make up whatever crazy stories they wanted. Until the day Harry chose to come out with the truth, he didn't care and he would try to ignore it. On his way out of the offices, Draco stopped him.
"Hey, Harry. Sorry I couldn't make it to that little bon-fire you had the other night. I got held up with something."
"That's all right Draco. You didn't miss much anyway. Just a little blow-up on my part." Draco smirked evilly.
"That isn't much? I would have loved to see that."
"I know you would have..." he was about to go on but Draco was looking down at Harry's robes and then plucked at them distastefully.
"Are those auror robes, Potter?"
"Back to surnames, are we? And yes, they are, Malfoy. Good of you to notice."
"Is this why you weren't at practice this morning? You're an auror again?"
"Yes, I am. I'm taking a leave of absence for a while and helping them out with this little Death Eater situation. I'm not going to just sit around and wait until they kill off everybody I care about. Damn bastards deserve to rot in hell for all they've done." Draco very noticeably flinched and stepped back from Harry.
"Something wrong, Draco?"
"No, I've....I've um...got a headache. I think I'll just be going home. Good luck at the new job," he said hurriedly and then turned on his heel to leave. Harry reached out and spun him around.
"What's got you so hyper all of a sudden?"
"Nothing. I said it was a headache. I gotta go!" He turned and ran out before Harry could say anything more.
"Strange," Harry muttered under his breath.
Harry went back to the office and started to get settled into his office. The day went by extremely fast for him, with people coming in all day to congratulate him on the fast promotion. There were even people coming in from different departments to speak with him. At one point, Arthur Weasley came in smiling happily at him.
"I just heard the news! Ron came and told me. Congratulations, Harry. That's wonderful. I'm proud of you for being able to do this again."
"Thanks, Arthur." Will you still be proud of me when Ginny and I come over to tell you that we're having a baby? he thought sadly.
"I really didn't expect Ron to just hand the job over to me like this. I just wanted to be an auror again." Arthur laughed happily.
"He's always wanted the best for you though."
"I know."
"Look, Harry, I was wondering if you were going to Pettigrew's trial on Friday?"
"I was planning on it. Why?"
"Oh, it's nothing. I just think that it's really important you go and testify. The correct action will be taken if you do." Harry nodded.
"Yes, I don't think that I could say no to testifying after all he's done to me over my lifetime." Arthur smiled sadly and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.
"He'll get what's coming to him. Just you wait....I should be going. A huge load of work just came into our department that I have to get started on. Say hello to Ginny for me. And don't be strangers anymore, yeah?"
"Yeah, I have a feeling that we'll be coming over sooner or later. Ginny will want to speak with Molly about the wedding and...a few other things with you both."
"Great, we'll see you later then, Harry!" he exclaimed and with a wave he was out the door again. By this time, it was time to leave and Harry put on his cloak to Apparate outside of his home. But before he could leave, Ron came bounding into his office.
"Hey mate! Do you mind if I come over for a while? Hermione and Harry aren't home tonight. They went to her parents house."
"Sure, if you don't mind Ginny. She will probably be in a right mood."
"First advice I'm going to give you: don't ever hack off a pregnant woman. Hormones. Woo! They are pretty scary."
"I've noticed. She told me to go kiss Hedwig goodbye if I wanted to kiss somebody so bad." Ron winced but then broke out into a smile.
"You could have done it and seen what she did."
"I don't think so," Harry laughed. "Let's go." They both Apparated to the outside of the Apparition barrier surrounding Harry's house. Harry turned to Ron and asked him what had been bothering him all day.
"Have you seen Draco lately?"
"No, why?"
"I saw him today. He was acting fine at first but then we started talking about how I'm an auror now and how Death Eaters are bloody bastards. He got all jumpy and said he had a headache and ran away from me." Ron furrowed his brow.
"Hmm...Definitely doesn't sound like Malfoy. He's usually calm and collected....I dunno, Harry. Maybe he really did have a headache." Harry unlocked his door and stepped into the warm atmosphere.
"I don't know. I'm kind of worried something might be up with him. Maybe he's upset that I'm not on the team for the time being."
"Could be." Harry closed the door behind them and locked it again. Remus walked into the room and greeted them happily.
"Hello, Moony. You've been stuck in a house with a mad pregnant woman all day and you're happy?" asked Ron incredulously. Remus smiled a little.
"Pregnant women aren't mad if you know how to deal with them. I calmed her down after Harry left and she's currently sleeping. Has been all afternoon, in fact."
"Thanks, Remus....I just don't know what to do. I want to respect her and not be an auror like she wants, but...I just can't. I need to do this."
"I understand, Harry. I'm sure she will too."
"Harry, is that you?" Harry looked in the direction Ginny's voice had come from. She was coming down the stairs and soon appeared. Harry sighed when he saw how beautiful she looked. She always had a certain radiance about her after she woke up from a nap or from a good night's sleep. This time was no exception. Being pregnant certainly made her look more radiant. Even if her stomach wasn't showing yet.
"Oh, hello, Ron," she said pleasantly and went to embrace her older brother. "I should be mad at you for doing this. You're the one who got him in, didn't you?" Ron looked down at his shoes with a guilty expression.
"I did...But you know, if I hadn't, Harry would have gone to somebody else and they would have gotten him in. There was no going around it." Ginny looked at him with a bemused expression.
"So quick to defend yourself. I'm not angry with you," she patted him on the top of the head in almost a condescending gesture and then turned to Harry.
"I want to speak with you," she said curtly. Harry fidgeted slightly before following her up to his bedroom. Once they were both in the room, and the door was shut and locked tightly, Ginny pushed him over to the couch and sat him down roughly.
"I don't like this one bit."
"I know, but..."
"No! I don't want to hear it again. I already know why you are doing this. And I've been thinking all day. Remus has thought I've been asleep. Well, I was, but only for the past hour. But anyway, that's beside the point. I know what your personality is like. It's always been this way. When an injustice has been done to you or somebody close to you, you want revenge; well, not revenge. That's too strong of a word for it. I know you say that you want every last Death Eater killed, but I know that you'd rather bring them in alive if you can help it.
"So, I guess you just want justice done. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with that, because there isn't. If anything, I love you more for it. It's another one of your many qualities that people admire so much about you. You didn't have Sirius and Remus kill Wormtail in third year because you knew that your father wouldn't want them to become murderers just for some scum bag like him. Even though he was the one responsible for all the grief in your life.
"I'm still not saying I'm happy about this, because I'm not. At all, Harry. But I am giving you my blessing to do so because I know you will feel guilty about doing what you think is right until you get it. We're going to be together for the rest of our lives, Harry. I can't continue being as selfish as I have been today if I want our marriage to work. And I should hope that you do the same for me in the future when I feel strongly about something.
"Just...just promise me one thing, Harry," she said as she started to get choked up.
"Anything."
"Please be careful out there. I don't want to raise this baby alone. I need you." Harry stood up and wiped the tears from her face.
"Ginny, I'll always come home to you every night. I promise you. I'll be fine," he assured her and then kissed her gently. "That baby will grow up with both of us here." He knelt down on the floor and lifted her shirt just past her belly button. He rested his hands on either side of it and smiled up at Ginny. He leaned his forehead against her bare skin and kissed the skin just below her belly button.
"I love you," he whispered.
"I love you, too," she replied and Harry could hear rather than see the smile in her voice.
"Let's go back downstairs. I'm sure Ron will want me to make something for him." Harry stood up and took Ginny in his arms.
"Just a couple more minutes," he whined. Ginny snuggled into his body and sighed contentedly.
"You know how Ron is. The stupid git is always hungry and he can't cook for himself. You know that's why he's here tonight. Hermione called to warn me that he'd probably be over tonight for dinner." Harry laughed into her hair.
"Sounds about right. Oh, fine," he said in a long suffering voice and then released her.
"Oh, I saw your dad today. He said that we shouldn't stay strangers anymore."
"I know. I feel horrible. I haven't been over there in such a long time. It was only a couple days after New Years that I was there. It's been a month since then." Ginny began leading him out of the bedroom and down the stairs.
"Do you think we can go over there this Friday? I do have to tell them about this new development." Harry wrapped an arm around her waist and whispered into her ear.
"You mean, we have to tell them." He kissed her on the cheek and continued walking down the stairs. Voices started to drift up from the living room and the delicious smells of somebody cooking drifted to their noses.
"Who on earth is cooking?" asked Ginny.
"I dunno. Could be Remus. He's fairly decent at that sort of thing." The two walked into the sitting room and found Remus, Ron, and Arthur speaking jovially.
"Dad! What are you doing here?" Ginny asked surprised.
"Your mother called me at work just after I spoke to Harry and said she'd be coming over here to cook dinner. So I decided to leave work early and come here." He rose from his place on the couch and embraced his daughter. They pulled away and Arthur held her out at arms length.
"You seem different today," he observed. "Almost...I don't know...kind of like you're glowing. What did Harry do for you?" he asked smiling with mischief in his eyes. Ginny turned red and looked at the ground.
"Nothing. Well, he's just being Harry," she said as she smiled at Harry.
"You two made up have you?" asked Ron. Harry and Ginny both shot him a severe look.
"You two were fighting?" asked Arthur. "I hope it wasn't serious."
"Oh, it was nothing, really. We're fine now. Harry, I need to ask you something," she said and then pulled him from the room. She continued to pull him into the downstairs bathroom and locked the door behind her.
"Do you think we should just tell them tonight? Now is as good a time as any, don't you think? Why hold off the inevitable?"
"Will your dad kill me?" Ginny giggled.
"I don't know. Probably not. He loves you too much; but I'm sure he may be a little disappointed that we didn't wait until marriage. Same thing with my mum. They'll get over it when they realise that they are getting another grandchild. So... are we going to tell them?" she asked with a little hope in her eyes.
"I suppose so. We might as well."
"Great!" she exclaimed and threw the door open. She went back into the sitting room while Harry went into the kitchen to greet Molly.
"Good evening, Molly!"
"Harry! I heard about your promotion at the Ministry. I still can't quite get over the fact that Ron just gave you his job!"
"You and me both. It's what he seemed to want. So, do you need help with anything?"
"Oh, no. But thank you. It'll be done in about twenty minutes. Why don't you just go back in the sitting room with them and I'll bring some drinks in."
"Okay." Harry went and sat next to Ginny and put an arm around her. Molly soon came in with bottles of butterbeer for everybody. Just as Harry had his first drink in his mouth, he noticed Ginny bringing the bottle to her lips. He sprayed his drink everywhere and nearly spilled his bottle when he reached over and grabbed the bottle from her hands.
"Agh, Harry, learn some manners!" exclaimed Ron. Harry paid him no mind and stared at Ginny who was looking at him confused.
"Ginny! What do you think you're doing?"
"Harry, what are you on about? I was going to drink that butterbee...Oooh! Oh, Merlin! Thank you for stopping me! I'm such a stupid git." Harry smiled kindly at her.
"It was just an honest mistake. Anybody could make it."
"What are you two on about?" asked Arthur confused.
"Nothing. I've just um...decided to stop drinking alcohol."
"That's good. What made you decide that?"
"Um...well.." She never got the chance to answer because Molly interrupted them by announcing dinner. Dinner was a tense affair for Ginny and Harry. Both were getting more and more nervous about telling Ginny's parents their news. Remus noticed their mood and kept sending reassuring smiles to both of them. Harry appreciated the kind gesture from him. He needed some reassuring, especially since he wasn't so sure how he felt about becoming a father already. It was a scary thought. What if he wasn't a good father? What if the child ended up hating him? The latter would probably be something he would worry about until his dying day. And plus, Harry didn't have the slightest idea on how to be a parent since he never had a good parental figure in his life. There had been Sirius but he hadn't been around much since his name wasn't cleared until after Harry was living in America. The only people he had to look to were Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. On second thought, he didn't want to take any kind of parental advice from what he had seen from them. The only thing he needed was another Dudley as a child of his own.
After dinner, Remus helped Molly with the dishes while Ron, Harry, Ginny, and Arthur went back into the sitting room.
"Er - dad? Harry and I need to speak to you and mum when she gets done with the dishes."
"All right, honey. What's this about?"
"Oh, you'll find out," she replied nervously. As Remus walked in with Molly, Ron gave the older man a warning look and they both backed out of the room.
"Where are they going?" asked Molly.
"Just giving us some privacy, I expect," said Harry.
"For what?"
"We needed to tell you some news that they already knew about," said Ginny. "Just promise me that you won't like freak out and try to ground me or something because that won't work. I'm twenty-four." Both her parents laughed.
"Why would we want to ground you? I don't ever recall grounding you for anything," replied Molly.
"Yes, I know. I'm just nervous about this. Harry only found out this morning so...this is happening pretty quickly for both him and myself."
"Well, get on with it, then."
"Okay, mum, dad...I'm pregnant." Harry bit his lip hard as both of their smiles were wiped off their faces.
"Excuse me? You're pregnant?" asked Molly.
"Yes, I'm pregnant." Harry noticed with trepidation that Arthur's face was slowly turning a deep shade of red.
"Virginia Weasley," he began sternly. "You two are not even married yet and you're sitting here telling me that you are pregnant with his child?" Ginny also bit her own lip and looked down at the floor.
"Yes," she said quietly.
"Did you not even think of birth control potion? How could you be so irresponsible?" asked her mother angrily.
"I was taking it and taking it on time every month, mum!" she exclaimed. "It's not 100% effective. We thought we were being responsible. And I don't think that you should even lecture us. We are not teenagers anymore. We are grown adults, planning our wedding. That should count for something. It's not like I got pregnant by some man who means nothing to me at all! I love Harry with everything I've got and I'm not going to sit back and take you lecturing me on getting pregnant by him. I'm happy about this baby and I think you should to. This baby is your grandchild!" By the time she was done speaking, her face was flushed and she was breathing heavily through her nose. Harry took her hand and she turned to him.
"Calm down, Gin. It's not good for the baby." Ginny's face softened as she looked at him and she sunk down next to him and put her head on his shoulder.
"I know. I'm sorry." Harry turned to look at his future in-laws and saw that Molly looked properly chastised. Arthur, however still looked angry but not as much as before. Molly got up and took Ginny into her arms.
"I'm so sorry, Ginny. You should be getting all the support you can get. I'm not saying that I'm happy that you'll be having this baby out of wedlock, but I am happy for you two. You need something good in your life and I think this will give it to you. So, how far along are you?"
"One month."
"Have you gone in for a doctors appointment yet?"
"I have one tomorrow."
"Good. I'm coming with you."
"Mum, I don't..."
"Nonsense. Harry will be at work and you need somebody there with you. No fighting." Ginny was released from her mother and went to her dad who stood up from the couch. Molly stood in front of Harry and looked him in the eye.
"Stand up if you know what's good for you!" she commanded while smiling. Harry obeyed and was immediately wrapped in a tight hug.
"I'm sorry I got you so upset," he said.
"Don't be silly. You didn't plan for this just as much as Ginny didn't. But I feel certain that that baby will be loved no matter the circumstances of it being born. Now...I must go scold Ron and Remus for not telling me about this!" she finished and scurried out of the room. Harry turned to see Ginny leaving the room with tears rolling down her face. Arthur saw the concerned look upon his face.
"Don't worry. She's fine. Hormones get the better of some women better than others. Molly was always a right state when she was pregnant. I'm sure Ginny will be the same."
"I think so. She already has been like a rollercoaster today."
"Rollercoaster?" Harry smiled.
"Muggle thing. I'll tell you about some other time."
"Yeah, some other time. Why don't you sit? I've been meaning to speak with you for a while. Because you know, you're marrying my only girl. Have to have some sort of talk." Harry swallowed hard and sat, forcing a smile onto his face.
"I figured this was coming sometime. I was hoping later, rather than sooner. But..."
"Don't worry, it won't be too painful. Harry, I've known you since you were what? twelve years old? I know that you are generally a good man and I really couldn't ask for a better son-in-law. But you know, she's still my baby and I have to assured that you won't hurt her in any way."
"I could never purposely do that to her, Arthur. I promise you that. Do you have any idea how long I've been in love with her and have wanted to be with her?" Arthur got an amused smile on his face and sat down on the couch and stretched his long legs out.
"No, I don't think I've heard how long." Harry followed his lead and stretched out as well.
"I believe it was since fifth year at Hogwarts? Or maybe sixth. So it's been nine or ten years. And I know that she had a crush on me from the moment she saw me when she was ten." His future father-in-law smiled indulgently.
"Yes, I remember her going on about you all the time when Ron came back from his first year at Hogwarts. And she hadn't even been properly introduced to you yet." Harry chuckled a little at the memories from his first visit to the burrow.
"When I came to the burrow for the first time, I remember eating breakfast at the table, and she couldn't even make eye contact with me without blushing. She was so distracted that she put her elbow in the butter dish." Arthur laughed.
"Oh, she is something....Harry, I..." he never finished because Ron came rushing into the room with his face flushed.
"Harry, we have got to go to London right now! They are going to need every hand ready to help. You'll never believe what has happened!
A/N: Hahaha! Cliff-hangers: gotta love 'em! I only ended it there because if I put the next part in, it would make this chapter about 30 pages long on Microsoft Works. I'll stop at 17 I think. So anyway, please review!! I would appreciate it ever so much! I'm not getting as good of a response here as I am from FictionAlley.org. There are people emailing me but not reviewing. Is it really bad? I'm sorry if this chapter was a bit boring. I decided to drop that Ginny was pregnant in this one instead of in a future chapter like my original plan was. More action will be coming in later chapters! If you want updates, please leave your email address in a review and I'll add you to the list!