Propensity
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot.
Chapter Sixteen
As the students left Hogwarts for the holidays, Ginny and Remus were oblivious to anything but their own happiness. They were looking forward to spending more time together, without interruption and away from the prying eyes of the students.
Remus had taken to reading to Ginny's belly every night. Hermione had brought some Muggle storybooks by a man named Dr. Seuss. Ginny wasn't sure what kind of doctor this man was, but Remus and Hermione assured her that the baby would like them.
On Christmas Eve, Remus was sitting on the floor, facing Ginny on the sofa, reading, Oh! The Places You Will Go. As he finished, he triumphantly closed the book and leaned forward to kiss her belly.
"Ready for your present?" he asked, looking up into Ginny's eyes.
"You want to do presents now?" she asked giddily. He nodded, and she waddled off to get his gift.
When she returned to the sitting room, she handed Remus a large wrapped box. She looked around the room for her gift, but she couldn't see it. At her confused expression, Remus uttered a spell, and her gift appeared before her.
"A rocking chair?" she asked excitedly. "It's wonderful; I love it!" She pulled the red and gold bow off the chair and sat in it, rocking back at forth. "The baby likes it too. Come, feel him kick."
Remus came forward and stood behind Ginny. He reached around, placing his hand on her belly. "He's getting stronger," he commented with pride.
Ginny rolled her eyes at him and stood. "You haven't opened yours yet," she said.
Remus grinned at her as he yanked the bow off his package and ripped the paper from it. He opened the box to reveal a set of books.
"Ginny!" he exclaimed. "These are the Dark Arts books I admired in Hogsmeade! But they're so expensive."
Ginny shrugged. "Remus, for you, money is no object," she said, kissing his cheek. "Besides, I know they'd be great for teaching next term."
"They're so wonderful," he cried. "Thank you!"
"We might as well enjoy giving each other gifts while we can," she said with a giggle. "Next year, it will be all about him." She patted her belly.
Remus pulled her into his arms and kissed her deeply. "Ginny," he said, "we'll never have expensive things or lots of money, but no matter what we have, you'll always have my love."
"Then that's all I need," Ginny replied, kissing him again.
Remus held Ginny's hand as they Flooed to the Burrow the next morning. He knew she was nervous about presenting their new relationship to her family.
Molly greeted them immediately, and Ginny instinctively dropped Remus' hand in front of her mother. Both got strong hugs from the Weasely matriarch before they proceeded into the packed living room.
Ginny's gaze took in the crowd before her. Hermione was there, sans Snape. Ron was there…with Blaise? She knew Ron was the Auror in charge of staying with him, but did he have to come to Christmas? Fred and George were there with Alicia and Angelina, respectively. Charlie was there, seemingly alone, and he was currently immersed in conversation with Bill, who was also alone. Harry was seated on the hearth with a pretty girl on his lap. Ginny didn't recognize her at first, but she soon realized it was Tonks! She exchanged a glance with Remus, who'd also noticed, and they shared a private laugh.
Ginny was hugged by each of her brothers and her father. Remus shook hands with Harry and the Weasley men before taking a seat next to Ginny on the sofa. Everyone exchanged gifts and chatted over hot chocolate and coffee. Remus did not receive a Weasley jumper, much to Ginny's chagrin.
Amidst the piles of gifts and wrapping paper, Ginny and her brothers talked and laughed about their childhoods. Remus, always respectful, stood towards the back and watched the family before him. His heart swelled, thinking that would be him and Ginny one day.
He excused himself to the upstairs loo. However, when he reached the top of the stairs, he heard voices coming from inside the room.
"Why can't we tell them?"
"I'm just not ready to yet. I thought you understood."
"Yes, I do, but they're your family. They'll understand. Unless you're ashamed of me…"
"You know that's not true."
"No, I don't. How do I know I'm not just a meaningless shag to you, someone to take advantage of?"
"Rubbish! You know how I feel about you."
"Do you love me?"
"What? How can you ask me that?"
"Just answer the question. Do you love me?"
"You know I do. You're the best Christmas gift I've ever gotten. I just want to wait a bit longer."
Remus knew this was a private conversation that he had no business listening to. He was just about to turn away, but at that moment the door opened. Unfortunately, the voices' owners had decided to step into the hallway, kissing each other. However, when they noticed their company, they sprang apart.
"Remus, I didn't know you were out here."
"That much is obvious," Remus replied.
"How much did you hear?"
"Enough to be embarrassed for intruding," Remus said, blushing. "But don't worry, Ron. I won't tell anyone about what I heard. You tell them when you're ready." He patted Ron on the shoulder.
Ron smiled weakly at him before he and Blaise returned downstairs.
Just as lunch was about to be served, Ginny and Remus escaped to the back porch to regroup.
"It seems to be going well, don't you think?" Remus asked, taking Ginny's hands in his.
She nodded. "Yes, but trust me. My mother's only being civil," she said dryly. "She's probably going to have a fit."
"You're too cynical," he said to her. "Think positive."
"Okay," Ginny said seriously. "I'm positive she's going to have a fit."
He chuckled before leaning down to capture her lips with his in a sweet kiss. They were, unfortunately, interrupted.
"Er…sorry," George said. "We're about to eat." His face was red, but he winked at his sister before going back into the house.
"We might as well do this now," Ginny grumbled. Remus merely nodded, for he was suddenly nervous.
They entered the dining room hand in hand and stood before her family and their friends.
"Ginny?" Arthur asked curiously, taking in his daughter and his friend.
"I just wanted you all to know that Remus and I are no longer just friends," she said. She paused, turning to look up at Remus. "I love him."
"Awwww!" said Hermione, Alicia and Angelina.
"Um, congratulations?" suggested Harry.
Molly stood and crossed the room to the couple. "Ginevra Molly Weasley, you unhand him this instant!" she bellowed.
Ginny dropped Remus' hand and put her arm around his waist instead. He put his arm around her shoulders, gripping her tightly to him.
"No, Mum," Ginny said firmly. "I love Remus, and I want to be with him."
"I forbid it!" shrieked Molly.
"I'm sorry you feel that way, Molly," Remus said calmly, "but I love her, too, with all my heart. We will be together whether you like it or not."
"You," Molly began," will not be anything other than the father of this baby. Unfortunately, there's just no way to change that."
"No, Molly," Remus replied, "I love Ginny. I have for a long time, though I've taken my time figuring it out."
"Just how long have you felt this way? Since she was your student?" Molly yelled. "I knew there was something inappropriate about you. But everyone said it was good for Ginny to talk to you. But deep down, I knew you were just a lecherous old man, taking advantage of Ginny."
Everyone in the room gasped. All the color drained from Remus' face as he dropped his arm from Ginny's frame. He took one step away from Ginny, towards Molly.
"Molly, I'm really surprised at you. I would hope that after all this time you would see how much I care about your family, as if they were my own. Apparently, I was wrong." He paused, struggling to remain calm. "But for you to accuse me of impropriety where your daughter is concerned is something I can not- no, will not- stand for." Remus' voice began to rise, as he continued.
"How dare you call my reputation into question? I did what I thought I needed to because Ginny needed someone to help her back then. You seemed to want to sweep what happened to her under a rug, but she needed to deal with it. I'm glad I was there for her, and I would do it again in a heartbeat. Now, you may not like how Ginny and I have gotten together, but you'll just have to live with it!"
He turned back to Ginny and took her hand. "I'm sorry, my dear, but I won't stand here and let anyone make our relationship tawdry. I'll see you back at Hogwarts."
Remus quickly turned and Flooed back to the castle, leaving everyone speechless behind him.
Ginny stood and stared at her mother. Ginny was shaking visibly, and tears were streaming down her cheeks.
"Mum, how could you?" she yelled, fists clinched. "How could you say those terrible things?"
"Ginevra, I'm worried about you," her mother said sternly. "He's obviously got you under some kind of spell. Now, sit down and eat your dinner."
"No, Mum, I won't," Ginny replied. "I want you to go and apologize to Remus."
"I'll do no such thing. You're just being silly."
"No!" Ginny shouted. "I'm not being silly. Mum, I love him. I want to be with him for the rest of my life. He is everything to me. We're going to be a family."
"Ginny, as soon as that baby is born, you're coming right back home, where you belong," Molly insisted.
"Mum, open your eyes. I'm an adult. I will be with Remus. If you can't accept that, I'm sorry," she said quietly. She turned to the rest of the group. "And that goes for the rest of you. If you can't accept my relationship with Remus, then perhaps you won't be my family anymore."
Ginny burst into fresh tears and quickly Flooed back to Hogwarts.
Everyone in the room sat in shocked silence for several minutes. Molly attempted to sit back down and eat her dinner, but after a moment, she left to go upstairs. Arthur looked bewildered at the rest of his brood.
Harry and Tonks stared down at their plates, while Hermione fought back tears. They all supported Ginny's and Remus' relationship, but they all also knew this wasn't the time or place to say so.
Charlie eventually spoke up. "She seems happy, don't you think?" he asked his brothers and father.
"Yeah, so does Lupin," Fred agreed. "I've never seen him smile that much." George nodded.
"But he's so old," Ron stated.
Blaise elbowed him and winked. "They can't help if they love each other, you know."
Ron glared at him in return.
Bill said nothing, but he quickly rose from his chair and Flooed out of the Burrow.
He tumbled into Remus' sitting room and heard sobbing behind the bedroom door.
"Ginny? Remus?" he called. He knocked on the door and waited for a response.
Remus opened the door and joined Bill in the sitting room.
"Remus," Bill began, "I just want you to know that not everyone feels the same as my mum. In fact, I came to tell you that I completely support your relationship. I'd hoped the two of you would end up together."
"Really?" Ginny asked from the bedroom doorway. The men looked up at her. Remus smiled lovingly at her, while Bill nodded.
"Yes, Ginny," he said, taking her in his arms, "I told you that I think Remus is a wonderful match for you. And the two of you will make great parents."
"Thank you, Bill," Ginny said, her voice muffled against his chest.
Remus cleared his throat. "Does anyone know you're here?" he asked.
Bill shook his head. "No, in fact, I don't even think they noticed I left." He sighed and sat in a chair, as Remus and Ginny sat upon the sofa. "After you left, Ginny, Mum went upstairs in a tiff, and the rest of us just sat there.
"Dad didn't say anything, but the rest of us all agreed that we're okay with the two of you being together. Everyone." He smiled at Ginny before his expression towards Remus turned grave.
"Remus, I want to apologize for those terrible things my mum said to you. We all know none of it's true," Bill said sincerely.
"Thank you, Bill," Remus replied. "You know I would never do anything to hurt Ginny, and I never thought of her as anything more than a student or a friend…until recently." He gripped Ginny's hand. "I just wanted to help her after the Chamber."
"I know, and we are very grateful," Bill said. "I know Ginny is especially."
Ginny nodded emphatically. "I didn't know who else to talk to, and I just felt like I could trust you," she said to Remus.
Remus looked at Ginny and kissed her cheek before turning back to Bill.
"Ginny and I haven't really discussed what's going to happen after the baby's born. What I mean is, whatever happens, we'll be together, but just in case anything should happen to either of us.... We hadn't decided for certain, but Ginny, you'll agree that Bill should be the godfather of the baby."
Ginny beamed at Remus first, then Bill.
Bill's face slowly spread into a broad grin. "Really?" he asked excitedly. "Me?"
Remus and Ginny nodded in unison. "I don't know what to say," Bill said happily. "Of course I will. Thank you so much!"
The three stood and hugged.
"I'd better get back," Bill said. "The others will wonder where I am." He pulled his sister into a hug. "Don't worry, Gin, it will all be okay. You'll see. I'll talk to them." He kissed the top of her head and shook hands with Remus before Flooing back to the Burrow.
A/N: WolfScar- Thanks for all your reviews! I would love to read your own stuff, but I can't ever find your Author profile. Can you help me out with that?