Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to JKR. I just like messing around with her creations.
Chapter Four: Talk Tonight
"You're what?" Augusta Longbottom said sternly.
"Engaged, Gran. To Ginny Weasley," Neville said slowly. He still had trouble believing it himself.
He had arrived home and, as expected, his gran had asked what had taken so long at Diagon Alley. He'd hemmed and hawed trying to think of something to tell her when he accidentally blurted the truth without buttering her up first.
"You're not even eighteen yet!" his gran exclaimed. She still sounded completely shocked, but Neville could tell she was starting to put things together. Her sharp eyes fixed on Neville shrewdly. "Is the girl pregnant?"
Neville sighed, but there was no use denying it. His grandmother would figure it out eventually. "Yes, she is."
Mrs. Longbottom gave a great, wheezing gasp and put a hand to her heart. Neville was just glad she was already sitting down. "Neville, I have never been so ashamed of you. I did not raise you to behave this way. What will people say? What would your parents say?"
Great, Neville thought, a lecture I don't deserve.
"Are you even sure the child is yours? You're much too young to get married, especially if you're not completely sure. Have you had a test done? They can do those at St. Mungo's, you know."
This was a snag Neville had not expected, although he didn't appreciate his gran insinuating that Ginny was that type of girl. He decided it was best if she didn't know the whole truth. "We don't need a test, Gran. The child will have my name," he answered honestly.
His gran appeared to accept this. "Well, the Weasleys are good people, at least. I can't say I completely approve, but under the circumstances you really don't have much choice."
She paused and rose from her chair, one finger prodding Neville's chest. "I want to meet this girl. Invite her over for dinner tomorrow night," she said finally. "I do hope you know what you're doing, young man. What a scandal…tarnishing the good family name." She continued mumbling under her breath as she walked away, leaving Neville alone in the lounge.
"Well, that could have gone better," Neville said to no in particular. The portrait of his Great-Great Uncle Egbert nodded.
"Are you sure you should wear your dress robes, Ginny?" Molly asked, frowning. "Aren't they a little short?"
"That's what the lace is for," Ginny replied, tossing a length of white lace on top of the sea-green robe. "Neville said his grandmother expects everyone at her dinner table to be dressed properly, and it's either this or that awful gold thing I wore at Bill and Fleur's wedding."
"Oh, all right." Her mother performed the necessary sewing charms to add the ruffled lace to the bottom of the robes. "How are you getting there?"
"Neville gave me the Floo address. Help me with this zipper," Ginny said, holding up her hair.
Molly zipped up the robes quickly, then turned Ginny to face her. "Are you sure you want to do this?"
"What choice do I have?"
"Your father and I could work out something with the Ministry if you chose not to get married…it would make things more difficult, but I know you'd manage. And Tonks says they've already managed to round up a few Death Eaters, and you could always go into hiding for awhile if necessary. So I'll ask you again – is this what you want?"
Ginny was silent for several moments. "Neville is clumsy and forgetful," she said finally. "He never did particularly well in school, except for Herbology. He's a horrible dancer and he has the lowest self esteem of anyone I've ever met."
She sighed and unconsciously smoothed the fabric of her robes over her still-flat abdomen. "He is also loyal and hardworking. He has a quiet inner courage. He doesn't really have a temper, and he is always kind and helpful. I'm sure he would be a wonderful husband…and father." Ginny grew very quiet and directed her gaze at the floor.
"But he is not Harry," her mother said softly.
Ginny shook her head, a pained expression on her face. "He is not. But he doesn't need to be."
Molly wiped a tear from her eye and enveloped Ginny in a warm hug. "The last of my babies is all grown up," she whispered.
Smirking, Ginny pulled away. "I don't know about that…you still have Fred and George, after all."
Shaking her head in exasperation, her mother shooed her towards the door. "Go on, now, you don't want to be late."
Ginny hurried downstairs to the fireplace and grabbed a pinch of Floo powder. She called out the Floo address firmly, and, after several dizzying moments, she landed in a richly furnished room with high ceilings and large windows.
Neville jumped at the sight of her, even though it appeared he had been pacing in front of the fireplace in anticipation of her arrival.
"H-hi Ginny. You look really nice," Neville said, his face pink. He ran his eyes over her as though he were studying something. "Are those the robes you wore to the Yule Ball?"
Ginny was surprised. "You remembered that?" she said, impressed. Neville nodded and took her hand.
"I know I wasn't the best dance partner, but I had a lot of fun that night," he said as they walked towards the dining room.
Ginny did not respond, seeing as she had more or less ditched Neville at the Yule Ball to spend time with Michael Corner. Instead, she looked around at the house Neville had grown up in. It was of decent size but not extravagant. She noted that Neville's grandmother must have somewhat eccentric taste, as there seemed to be a large collection of ugly antique statues and vases.
Mrs. Longbottom was already seated at the table when they entered. Before Neville led Ginny to her chair, he quickly lowered his mouth to her ear.
"Remember, she thinks I'm the, uh, biological father. It's better this way," he whispered. Ginny blanched, wishing Neville had remembered to tell her this earlier. She would have to exercise caution when speaking.
"Gran, this is Ginevra," Neville said formally.
Since when does Neville know my full name? Ginny wondered as she nodded politely to Mrs. Longbottom. "I'm very pleased to meet you," she said, hoping her voice sounded sincere. She sat down opposite Neville at the table and unfolded her napkin.
"I've seen you before. You were at St. Mungo's on Christmas two years ago, and you also took part it that little adventure at the Ministry," Mrs. Longbottom stated. "Weren't you Neville's date to the Yule Ball, as well?"
Ginny nodded and forced a smile. She supposed it was a good thing she and Neville had actually had a somewhat real date in the past. It provided more of a foundation for their lie.
Neville passed Ginny the platter of roast beef, and she passed him the bowl of potatoes. She handed the bread basket to Neville's grandmother after taking a small piece herself. Despite the tense atmosphere, the meal looked delicious, and Ginny realized she was positively starving.
Ginny was barely halfway through her roast beef, however, before Mrs. Longbottom set down her fork and looked between Neville and Ginny.
"You know, Neville, you never even told me you were seeing someone," his grandmother remarked.
"It must have slipped my mind, with the war and everything," Neville answered. He seemed to have rehearsed his answers.
Ginny looked down at her plate and began to butter a piece of bread very deliberately. Clearly, Neville's grandmother wanted to discuss "the incident," and Ginny wasn't sure she could handle it.
"I really like that blue vase in the corner, Mrs. Longbottom. Is it a family heirloom?" Ginny attempted.
Mrs. Longbottom was not to be deterred. "So you saw the war as an excuse to be loose with your morals, Neville?"
Ginny choked on her bread. She hastily gulped some water as Neville looked on concernedly.
Apparently unaware of Ginny's plight, Mrs. Longbottom barreled on. "At least you already have a job, Neville. I don't know what you would do if you hadn't finished Hogwarts yet." She paused, her brow furrowing. "You know, I thought the Weasley in your year was a boy."
She turned to Ginny, a look of disbelief on her face. "Are you still in school?"
Ginny suddenly felt like a slag.
"Gran, do we have to talk about this?" Neville asked quietly.
Mrs. Longbottom narrowed her eyes. "I believe I have the right to learn more about the girl my grandson plans to marry."
"Ginny is a wonderful person, Gran, and I care for her deeply. Yes, we are a little young…but in the end, does that really matter?" Neville had a slightly shocked look on his face, as though he couldn't believe his own audacity.
Before that moment, Ginny had not fully appreciated just how grown up Neville had become. He was a far cry from the timid doormat of years past.
"We are not done discussing this, young man," Mrs. Longbottom said firmly. "There is a proper procedure that must be followed in these circumstances, and that requires my knowledge about what happened."
Neville stood up abruptly. "Thank you for dinner, Gran. I should get Ginny home." He grabbed Ginny's hand and pulled her to her feet.
"Neville, dinner is not over!" Mrs. Longbottom said, her tone that of someone who was not accustomed to being crossed.
"I'll be back later," Neville said as he walked back towards the fireplace, Ginny in tow.
"Thank you for the lovely evening, Mrs. Longbottom," Ginny called over her shoulder. She caught one last glimpse of the sputtering older woman before they reached the lounge.
"I'll Floo right after you," Neville said. Nodding, Ginny grabbed some Floo powder and shortly found herself back in the Burrow.
Ron was seated at the table with a Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook lying open in front of him, though he seemed to be paying more attention to the leftover shepherd's pie he was eating. He looked up at her, grinning.
"Get out of here, Ron, Neville's coming," Ginny hissed.
"I'm not leaving you in here alone with him!" Ron exclaimed.
"Oh honestly," Ginny said, rolling her eyes. "Neville and I are engaged, and in case you forgot, I'm already pregnant. Get out. Out!" She shoved Ron out the door, book in hand.
Neville arrived a few seconds later. "I am so sorry, Ginny," he blurted.
"You have nothing to be sorry for," Ginny said. She took out a couple of bowls and a large leftover dish of her mother's homemade bread pudding. "I expected it, really, and it is, after all, mostly my fault. You didn't deserve any of those insults she threw at you."
"I've never stood up to her before," Neville said, a slightly nauseated look on his face as he helped himself to some bread pudding. He laughed suddenly, his face breaking into a wide grin. Soon, Ginny found herself laughing as well.
The hilarity continued for several more minutes, during which Ginny's mother poked her head in the doorway and smiled. Ginny caught her eye and smiled back. After all, things were much better than they could have been.
A/N: Please let me know what you think of Mrs. Longbottom here. We haven't seen her much in the books, and I definitely have my own take on her, so I'd love to hear everyone's opinions. Reviews make my day!