When the Weasleys first read about Ginny and Harry's return they were initially shocked and hurt to discover the pair were back and hadn't let anyone know, and then to make matters worse they'd been left to discover the news via a newspaper article the entire country would have read. After the shock, came the anger and ever more hurt as they digested Ginny's harsh words, aimed towards two of her brothers.
In fact within an hour of reading the article, Molly, Bill and Ron all had to be stopped by their significant others, from rushing off in search of Harry and Ginny. All three had concluded that they would be staying at Grimmauld Place, and it was where they'd all been planning on heading before being stopped in their tracks. Instead the family had all seemed to congregate at The Burrow and the decision was made to talk to Harry and Ginny as a family.
With a decision made, Molly sent a short note to the pair via owl, informing them that if they wanted to remain as part of the family, they would turn up at the allotted family meeting. Not wanting to drag things out, the family meeting had been arranged for Sunday afternoon, the day after the article had dropped. In fact the family had gathered beforehand to have Sunday lunch together, but Harry and Ginny's invite was for later in the afternoon.
Gathered for the meeting were Molly and Arthur, Bill and Fleur, George and his new wife, Angelina, Percy and his American fiancée, Audrey, Ron and Pansy and Hermione and Draco. The only Weasley not in attendance was Charlie as he still lived and worked in Romania. As for Hermione and Draco, they had been included in the invite as Hermione was like a part of the family as Ron's best friend.
To be honest, no-one was quite sure if Harry and Ginny would turn up to the family meeting, but even so everyone was gathered around the kitchen table at the allotted hour. A few minutes before the time Molly had given them, Arthur quietly confirmed that someone had passed through the wards at the back of the house. And sure enough there was a timid knock on the door only moments later.
Since Molly was still rather angry at her youngest child, and the wizard she thought of as another son, Arthur was the one to get up to answer the door. He opened the door to find a sheepish looking Ginny and Harry standing on the doorstep.
"Hi, Dad," Ginny greeted tentatively.
"Ginny," Arthur returned, smiling softly despite himself as even though he was disappointed in what had happened, he was still overjoyed to see his daughter again. "You've had your hair cut," he remarked.
"It's better in the heat," Ginny said, her hand automatically going to her bare neck and rubbing at it.
"I think the pair of you should come in," Arthur said as he opened the kitchen door as wide as it would go. "Everyone is here."
With their hands entwined together, Harry and Ginny stepped over the threshold of The Burrow for the first time in five years. Warily they took in the sight that greeted them, and the same things occurred to them both. Firstly, that no-one looked very happy to see them, which given what had happened the previous day, wasn't too surprising. Secondly, for some bizarre reason Draco Malfoy was sitting at the kitchen table in between Hermione and Ron. And thirdly, there were two witches neither Harry nor Ginny knew. They both recognised Angelina and guessed she and George were together as they'd been friends five years ago. However, there was a witch with short dark hair they didn't know sitting next to Percy, and sitting beside Ron was a striking raven haired witch, who did seem vaguely familiar, but neither Harry nor Ginny could really place her.
"Perhaps the two of you should take a seat," Molly said sharply, gesturing to the two empty chairs that had been left for their visitors.
"I feel like we're on trial," Ginny muttered nervously as she sat down next to George while Harry took the seat beside her, which was next to Arthur.
"Got a guilty conscience, have you?" Ron sneered.
"Ron let's all be civil about this," Arthur cautioned. "I'm sure Harry and Ginny can explain everything. I'm sure there is a reasonable explanation as to why they returned home and thought the best way of announcing their return was for us to read it in the papers."
Despite his words, Arthur's tone told a different story, and both Harry and Ginny suspected that nothing they could say would truly justify the way they'd handled things.
"First, we want to start by apologising," Ginny began. "Especially me. I let my tongue run away with me when I was speaking to the journalist, and I deeply regret it."
"I should hope so," Molly sniffed haughtily. "Leaving aside the content of your interview for the moment, why did you talk to the press before letting us know you were home? Surely you didn't want us to find out about your return in the papers?"
"Definitely not," Harry said forcefully. "Our intention was to settle in and have things sorted before we announced our return."
"But I got carried away and did something stupid," Ginny admitted with a sigh. "I was just so disappointed that things didn't go as we planned. I was so sure we could settle in, and Harry could find a job before we announced we were back. But the meetings he'd arranged didn't go according to plan."
"It must have been such a blow to find you couldn't just waltz back into training from where you left off," Ron remarked snappishly. "Especially when 'mediocre morons' like myself and Draco had managed to pass all our training."
"I didn't mean that about you, Ron," Ginny protested. "I was just pointing out that Harry was more suited to be an Auror than anyone else he started training with."
"In your opinion he may have been better suited, but he didn't stick it out, did he? Being an Auror takes hard work and dedication. So maybe it's not a job for Harry after all," Ron retorted.
"Maybe you're right, Ron," Harry conceded. "Maybe it was never meant for me. But clearly it was meant for you."
"You don't need to sound so surprised, I'm not a complete idiot," Ron shot back, not at all in a forgiving mood.
"We never thought you were," Ginny replied hastily, locking eyes with Harry briefly before they both looked away guiltily.
"What was that look for?" Ron demanded. "Wait don't tell me, you didn't know I was an Auror, did you? You thought I'd failed my training, didn't you? That was why you didn't think twice about insulting the people Harry was training with."
"We're sorry, but it was a natural conclusion to come to," Ginny protested. "We saw you in Diagon Alley, and it looked like you were working for George."
"When was this?" George asked with a frown.
"Last week when we first got back," Ginny explained. "As I say, we saw Ron filling up some displays and assumed he was working for you."
"Which given he was worried he would never pass his Potions exam last time we saw him, seemed a reasonable assumption to make," Harry added. "You can't deny you were talking about packing it all in last time we saw you, Ron."
"True, I was," Ron conceded. "But you still could have found out, rather than just assuming I'd been a complete and utter failure. Just for the record, I passed all my tests first time around, so I didn't have to repeat a year."
"Hold on, if you are an Auror, why were you working for George last week?" Ginny asked with a frown.
"I was giving my brother a helping hand while I was waiting for Hermione to finish gossiping in the book shop," Ron answered.
"I was not gossiping," Hermione protested, reaching across Draco and playfully swiping her best friend on the arm.
"Sounded like gossiping to me," Ron replied with a grin.
"So you don't work for George, even part time?" Ginny checked.
"No, this 'mediocre moron', has his hands full being a full time Auror," Ron retorted.
"Look on the bright side, Ron, you might be a 'mediocre moron', but at least Ginny wasn't trying to get you sacked," George remarked.
"No, that pleasure she saved for me," Bill seethed, his anger palpable to everyone in the room. "And I do have to say, that was so nice of you, Gin, to try and put your own brother out of work when he has a family to support."
"We didn't know you were the Defence Professor," Ginny protested, taking in the fact Fleur's hand rested on her slightly rounded stomach as Bill spoke about having a family to support. It would appear that her eldest brother was due to become a father again.
"And it never occurred to you to check out if the job was taken before asking about it?" Bill scoffed.
"No, we assumed things would be the same as always and the position would be changing hands yearly," Harry said. "I never would have tried to take your job, Bill. The second McGonagall told me the job was taken, that was it."
"Maybe for you, but not for everyone," Fleur snapped, her French accent even more pronounced in her agitated state. "Bill spoke to Professor McGonagall yesterday, and she confirmed that Ginny spoke to her and actually suggested she sack Bill."
"Tell me you didn't, Gin," Harry groaned. "I thought you were just mouthing off to the reporter."
"I didn't know Bill was the Professor in question," Ginny argued.
"But you would have been happy to do some other bloke out of a job?" Bill questioned with a shake of his head. "You would have even been content for her to move me and do someone else out of a job. I do believe you suggested I replace the Potions master."
"But Theo's only been in the job a few years," Draco protested.
"If this one would happily see her brother out of a job, your friend stands no chance, Malfoy," Bill snorted.
"I'm sorry," Ginny whispered. "I didn't mean it."
"No, you just didn't care about anyone but yourself," Bill snapped. "All you cared about was Harry getting a job, and never mind anyone who stood in his way. Merlin knows what you would have done if it had been you looking for a job."
"And why aren't you?" George asked. "Or are you planning on becoming a kept woman?"
"Actually, there's not much point in me finding a job just yet," Ginny said, a small smile gracing her lips as she realised the perfect way to get her family onside. "We came home for a reason. Hermione and Fleur are not the only witches about to add another Weasley to the family, Harry and I are expecting as well."
Ginny's smile grew wider as she waited for everyone to start congratulating her. However, everyone sat in stunned silence before people's heads began to turn towards Hermione.
"Is there something you want to tell us?" Draco asked Hermione, a teasing smirk tugging at his lips.
"Not that I am aware," Hermione answered, her attention on Harry and Ginny. Ginny was pouting moodily, while Harry just looked confused. "Would either of you care to explain?"
"What's to explain? I'm pregnant and none of my family gives a damn," Ginny hissed. "I'm beginning to wish we hadn't come home."
"You're not the only one," Bill muttered.
"We are happy for you, Ginny," Molly insisted. "It's great news. But we're all a bit confused about Hermione adding to the family. Of course her son will be part of the family, but he won't be a Weasley."
"You're going to give your child your maiden name?" Ginny questioned with a frown.
"No, my son will have his father's surname, my surname," Hermione answered.
"You're not married to Ron, are you?" Harry questioned as understanding began to dawn.
"Me?" Ron spluttered as several other people chuckled at the idea. "Of course we're not married. Why would you think that?"
"You were together in Diagon Alley," Ginny said.
"As friends," Ron explained with a roll of his eyes. "I don't get why you thought we were together. You know we tried that and decided we were better off as friends."
"Things could have changed," Ginny argued defensively.
"I think one thing is clear," Pansy remarked. "You two have made a hell of a mess of your return. You've screwed up at every possible opportunity."
"And who the hell are you to judge us?" Ginny hissed at the raven-haired witch sitting beside her brother. "You don't know us."
"I do actually," Pansy chuckled. "Sorry to be so blunt, but I don't believe in sugar coating things. I call it like I see it."
"Yeah, you certainly keep us all on our toes, Pans," George said with a chuckle.
"As it should be," Pansy returned, smirking across the table at George, whom she was particularly fond of.
"Pans?" Ginny echoed. "Pansy? Pansy Parkinson?"
"That's me," Pansy confirmed with a large grin. "Although I won't be Parkinson for too much longer."
"And what will you be?" Ginny asked, even as she had a sinking feeling she already knew the answer.
"Weasley," Pansy answered, sliding her arm through Ron's and smiling up at her fiancée. "Or maybe Parkinson-Weasley. We could double barrel our names, that could be fun."
As Ron laughed about joining his name with Pansy's, Harry's attention turned back to Hermione. That was when he took another look around the table and worked out that everyone was sitting beside their partner, and considering Bill was on the other side of Hermione, it could only mean one thing.
"Malfoy," he hissed under his breath.
"Yes, Potter?" Draco asked, having heard Harry and guessing just what it had taken him an eternity to figure out.
"You," Harry spluttered. "Hermione's carrying your child."
"She was last time I checked," Draco confirmed with a smirk.
"What?" Ginny cried; sure she'd heard wrong. "That is impossible."
"I assure you, it is entirely possible," Draco replied with a shrug.
"Bloody hell, things have changed while we've been gone," Harry remarked, still shaking his head at all the revelations.
"Which is maybe why you should have gotten in touch when you first came home," Molly chided, her tone slightly kinder than it had been earlier as it seemed she was calming down. "If you'd done that, you could have caught up on all the news before you made such fools of yourselves."
"That would have been nice," Harry said with a sigh. "But have we completely blown it now? Do you all hate us?"
"No-one hates you," Arthur answered, although the dirty look Bill shot their way begged to differ. "You have hurt people, and you need to make amends. But at the end of the day, you're still family, and family sticks together."
Harry and Ginny shared a relived look, pleased that they hadn't been thrown out of the family. They knew they still had work to do, especially with Bill and Fleur, and possibly even Ron. But they were determined to stick around and make amends for Ginny's rash words. They wanted to be part of the family again, even if they had to work to regain the love and trust they'd come so close to throwing away by their entitled behaviour.
The End.
A/N - Thank you everyone for reading and reviewing this story. I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. There is an After The End piece to this story, which I will publish on Monday.