Sorry, this is a super short chapter. Trust me, there are some really long ones though.
I sat in my room in the Leaky Cauldron, waiting for George to arrive. He was coming over to discuss the girls. We were going to decide how and when to tell them that he was their father. He also just wanted to know about his daughters.
There was a knock on the door and I stood slowly, aching from a grueling practice, and walked over to open it. George was standing just outside of it; looking fabulous as always, and I stepped aside to let him enter.
"Hello," he said as he sat in an armchair.
"Hi," I answered, sitting across from him. "What would you like to know first?" I asked quietly.
"When's their birthday?" He asked hoarsely.
"February 14," I answered softly.
"Valentine's day. You were still only seventeen. They were born less than a week before Ginny's wedding?" he asked, looking amazed.
"Yeah," I said with a slight smile. "Gianna was first," I added. "Adele came about two hours later." He nodded.
"Tell me about each of them," he demanded suddenly, lifting his gaze to mine.
"Adele is a quiet, sweet girl. Oh, her full name is Adele Louise Calavierres. She loves to read anything she can get her hands on, she's a lot like me in that respect. Adele's afraid of spiders. She has an amazing retention rate for information, I think she remembers almost everything she's ever learned. She hates onions, Brussels sprouts, and pudding. Actually, they both hate almost all English cuisine, sorry about that," I smiled weakly and he nodded, a faint smile touching his lips as well. "Hmm, Adele has this amazing capacity to feel and express emotions, and she's very easily hurt by petty insults or teases. She's a shy, timid, girl, and she has a great business sense." He smiled and nodded.
"And Gianna?" He asked quietly, watching me as I spoke.
"Gianna Molly Calavierres is yours. You should have been the one to get to raise her," I said, staring at him. "She's so much like you," I felt tears gather in my eyes. "For the first couple of years I couldn't spend much time with her. It hurt too much. She's carefree, spirited, wild, she's not afraid of anything. She loves to pull pranks; she's smart, but hates books and studying. She's recently started trying to invent her own prank items, and she's really not bad. She's got this insane irreverence for the rules, and hates boundaries. She never crosses the line, but she loves to push and push until you want to scream. Everything about her just screams you," I said, my voice catching. I started to cry. "And they're both beaters!" I wailed, burying my face in my hands.
At this, George burst out laughing.
"What?" I sniffled, looking up at him.
"You!" He exclaimed. "'And they both beaters, waaahhh!' As if that's the worst thing in the whole world."
"It is when you're a professional seeker!" I cried, smacking the arm of my chair.
"Oh, sweetheart, you don't seem to remember do you?" he asked with a grin. "Fred and I got several offers to play professionally."
"Oh, yeah," I said, wiping my nose with the sleeve of my robe.
"Hmm, I've missed you Annabelle," he said suddenly, staring at me. "I missed you every day."
I stared at him, my breathing come very slowly. He stood up and walked over to where I sat. He pulled me to my feet, and laughed suddenly.
"You're so small," he said quietly. "You've always been small, I'd just forgotten how much so." He looked down at me. "I always loved how you could make me feel so big and powerful and protective."
My eyes were wide now, and I was staring at him. I felt hope blossoming through my body.
"George," I whispered. He looked at me, and waited for me to say more. "I always loved you," I said quietly, staring up at him. "Even when I was alone with two babies and a professional Quidditch career, I still loved you. I've loved you everyday since the moment I met you," I whispered quietly. "I'm going to love you until the day that I die."
He was staring at me, and I didn't know what he was feeling or thinking. Without warning, his arms wrapped around me and he pulled me fully against him, his lips crashing down on mine. I felt tears slide down my cheeks. This was what had been missing form the last eleven years of my life. My arms wrapped around him, trying to pull him closer. I wanted him to be as close to me as was humanly possible. His hands were buried in my hair, and he was devouring my face with his lips. I could hardly think, I pressed myself against him as tightly as I could.
"I love you, Annabelle, I always have," he whispered as he trailed kisses down my neck. I moaned harshly, and made no move to stop him as he removed my robe.
His hands roamed freely over my bared skin. I still wore my undergarments, but that was it. He went to pick me up, and I wrapped my legs tightly around his waist.
"Don't you dare drop me," I whispered in reference to one Christmas eve when he had dropped me very loudly on the floor of his flat in surprise when Fred had unexpectedly shown up.
He chuckled appreciatively and set me on the bed. I scooted to the edge and pulled him closely against me, he was trying to toe off his shoes and I was working quickly on undoing the buttons of his shirt. In moments he was lying beside me wearing as little as I was, if not less. I giggled and let him take charge. After all, George always liked to be in charge.