Chapter 3: "Harry, can I talk to you?"

As the months passed Harry, Ron, and Ginny gained their respect with the older aurors and Hermione continued her search for Nagini. Rumors about Harry and Ginny continued to spread. But that is not the surprises that Harry was currently going to receive.

"Harry, can I talk to you?" Ron said poking his head into Harry's cubical. Harry looked at the report that he had to get done for Kingsley by the end of the day. When he looked up from his report to his best friend he saw the concern and stress surrounding Ron.

"Sure Ron, what's up? You look a little stressed." Harry said with pure concern.

"Well," Ron started, looking nervous. "It's Hermione."

"What's wrong with her? Is she alright?" Harry said getting worried. "You two didn't have a fight again did you?"

"She's fine Harry." Ron reassured him. "But…" he paused looking nervous once again. "She's pregnant." Harry looked at Ron like he was crazy. Hermione, pregnant? For some odd reason he just couldn't picture Hermione pregnant. "I don't know what to do."

"Do what ever comes natural Ron." Harry said trying to give the best advice he could without experience. "I don't have experience with this Ron. You should ask your father. I'm sure he could give you better advice then I can."

"I don't know how I'm going to tell my parents." Ron seemed that this was the first time that he had even thought about telling his parents. With the way Ron was looking, Harry wished that he hadn't mentioned it.

"All you need to do is bring Hermione into the same room as your mother." Harry explained. "You saw the way she acted when Fleur was pregnant. Fleur didn't even get the chance to tell Bill before she was in hysterics."

"Yeah, you're probably right." Ron mumbled. He wasn't paying much attention to Harry anymore. He was too concentrated on his thoughts. "I'll see you at dinner tonight Harry."

"Bye Ron." Harry shook his head. Harry never saw Ron concentrate so hard on one thing, other then Hermione. He watched as Ron bumped into about five people making them drop their papers and scowl, muttering about trainees.

"What's up with Ron?" Tonks said.

"Nothing, just a lot on his mind." Harry answered with a knowing smile that made Tonks raise her eyebrows with curiosity.

"Harry, can I talk to you?" Tonks said. This made Harry mimic Tonks's expression.

"What can I do for you Tonks?" Harry said pushing Kingsley's report to the side once again.

"Well," Tonks started. "Remus would do this himself but he's currently on an Order mission for the next two months. He wanted to ask you something?"

"What did he want?" Harry asked curious as to what his only father figure in his life right now would want. "Is he all right?"

"Everything's fine Harry!" Tonks said knowing he was going to say that. "In fact everything is perfect. Before Remus left last night he finally purposed to me." Tonks said holding up her hand so Harry could see the ring.

"Congratulations Tonks!" Harry said giving her a hug. "I knew it was only a matter of time before he realized what was right it front of him."

"Well, Harry, that's not why I'm here." Tonks said. "Remus asked me to ask you if you would be his best man."

"Well of course I will be." Harry said. "I'd be honored."

"Good, because I'm going to need your help with a few things with the wedding." Tonks said taking out a list that was three pages long. Harry looked at the list.

"Just a few?" Harry said sarcastically.

"We want to get married in three months. Remus won't be back for two so you have to make sure all of the groomsmen are told and you can distribute all of the things on the list to them." Tonks started. "I have a list that is three times as big as that one. You'd be surprised at how much needs to be done for a wedding."

"But I still can't wait to have mine." Harry said with a starry-eyed look in his eyes. Tonks knew this look. He was thinking about his future with Ginny after Voldemort was defeated. Tonks was happy for them and just wished that this war would be over so that Harry and Ginny could have their peaceful happy ever after.

"Well, I better be going Harry. I have a lot to do in the coming months and I want to get a head start." Tonks then left, leaving the starry-eyed man to think about his future. Harry finally sat down with the intentions of getting back to his report but ended up staring off into space thinking about Ginny and what his life would be like after the war.

"Get your head out of the clouds Potter!" Someone growled behind him taking his mind back to the present.

"Hey, Moody. What can I do for you?" Harry said turning around to the now reinstated Auror. Moody had decided to come back to the Auror force after teaching at Hogwarts for the second time, claiming retirement just didn't suit him. In truth, everyone was glad that he had returned.

"I wanted to talk to you Harry." Moody said. This quirked Harry's curiosity. Moody never used Harry's first name unless he was taking about the Order. Moody was the leader for the Order ever since Dumbledore past. He was another person who had known about Harry's prophecy and a little about what he and Dumbledore were doing before he died.

Harry saw Moody cast several privacy charms on his cubical and look around the area before looking at Harry with his piercing blue eye. If Harry were younger and less experienced with this from Moody he probably would have run away in the opposite direction as far as he could but it didn't faze him.

"I've noticed that you, Ron, and Ginny are keeping an eye out for any rumors about Nagini." Moody started. "I wanted you to know that I have sent out a crew of five men specifically sent out to accomplish this task. They will find the snake and capture her and bring her back. We have heard rumors of where she could be and they are to check out all of these locations. It might take awhile but at least now Hermione won't be asking for days off all of the time."

"How did you figure it out?" Harry said a little concerned that someone found out their secret about Nagini. If one person found out about it another could.

"Don't worry Harry. It took me two months to figure it out and I'm one of the only ones who know about what you are trying to accomplish. I covered up a few of your tracks but for what you are trying to hide I don't think I could have done any better. Hermione covered for you very well."

"Thanks, but when you get word of them finding Nagini contact me and Hermione as fast as possible." Harry said. "She's our bait for Voldemort as well the last piece of the puzzle. You should probably set up a cage for her at headquarters. Make sure she doesn't know where she is though. I know for a fact that she can contact Voldemort any time that she wants to. Make sure that she can't escape either. We don't want her to get out before we can use her the way we need to and destroy her."

"Alright Harry. I'm sending them a letter tonight with their directions. Hopefully we will be able to win this war within the next year." Moody said with a smile.

"I have a feeling it might just be shorter then that." Harry said winking at him and smiling back while Moody put the privacy charms down.

"And don't let me catch you day dreaming again Potter!" Moody said loud enough for the people surrounding them to glace their way. Harry just shook his head then went back to his report for Kingsley hoping that he wouldn't be interrupted again. No such luck.

"Harry," Kingsley said making his way quickly toward him. Harry looked at his report that he was probably coming for that wasn't even half way done. "You have to go to the infirmary. Ginny fainted."

Harry was out of his chair in a matter of seconds and going down to the infirmary. If anyone saw him they would have thought that someone had set fire to his pants. When Harry reached the infirmary Ginny was just leaving.

"Ginny, what's wrong?" Harry said worried. Ginny was glancing behind him though. Harry had raced past the Daily Prophet room and there were about five reporters standing behind.

"Nothing Harry." Ginny said giving a glare at the reporters. "I just got a little dizzy and fainted. The nurse said it was probably because I didn't have breakfast this morning or dinner last night. She told me to slow down and to make sure that I eat something for every meal. I'm fine Harry."

"But Gin, this is the fourth time this week that you've felt dizzy. Maybe you got hit with a spell and don't know it. Did you ask?" Harry said concerned.

"She did a check for any type of spell, charm, hex, or jinx and she didn't find anything." Ginny said. "If this keeps up I'll go to Poppy. I can trust her to tell me what wrong if there is anything wrong. Don't worry Harry, I have this under control. Now get back to work. I'm going to go home and rest for awhile."

"Make sure you eat something." Harry reprimanded as Ginny walked away. Ginny just waved good-bye to him with her back still turned. Harry's attention was brought back when a reporter thought it was a good idea to take a picture of him at that moment. Harry glared at them and then went back to his office that still had the report to do.

Harry finally finished his report for Kingsley but still had a lot of work to do but Harry wanted to go home and make sure that Ginny was okay. So, Harry packed up a few of the reports and took them home with him. When he got back to his apartment that he and Ginny shared Ginny was nowhere in sight. He noticed the dirty plates in the sink so he knew that she at least came home to eat. She probably just went over to the Weasley's new house to help her mother or went out shopping for food. Harry noticed, as he opened one of the cupboards, there was none in the house.

Harry sighed and decided that he would wait until he went over to Ron and Hermione's to eat. In the meantime, as he waited for Ginny to return, he would work on the reports that he brought home.

Harry was working for about hour when he heard Ginny come back. He had just finished his reports and was just about to put them away when he was interrupted by Ginny.

"Harry, can I talk to you?" Ginny said entering the office that Harry was currently working in.

"Sure honey. What's on your mind?" Harry said hoping that he could get through this day without another big surprise or change in his life. No such luck.

"I went to see Poppy." Ginny started smiling, which is a good sign. "I got dizzy again right after I finished eating. Well I thought that I should get it checked out. Make sure that I wasn't hit by a stray spell or something."

"What did she say?" Harry said holding his breath hoping that nothing was seriously wrong.

"Nothing's wrong Harry." Ginny reassured him which made him breath easier. "But she gave me some unexpected news." Harry knew where this was going. He had a similar conversation with Ron just this morning.

"Your not pregnant are you Gin?" Harry said with a passive face. He didn't want to get excited if she wasn't but he didn't want her to think that this was a bad thing.

"Would you be mad if I was?" Ginny was looking nervous now and wasn't meeting Harry's eyes.

"Are you Gin?" Harry said with a little more excitement and light in his eyes. Ginny finally met Harry's eyes and saw some of the excitement in them. She nodded. Harry got up from his desk and crossed the room before she even knew that his expression had changed. He took her into his arms and gave her a kiss that she wasn't soon going to forget.

"Does it look like I'm mad?" Harry said smiling down at the woman that he loved. She smiled back showing that she was just as excited, or more, about this baby. But both of them couldn't help but think 'Why did this have to happen now?' Right in the middle of a war, where either one of them could die tomorrow or next week or next year.

"How are we going to tell everyone?" Ginny said making Harry cringe. It was one thing about finding out about the baby but telling Ginny's family, not to mention five protective, older brothers, was not going to be fun.

"Tell you what," Harry started coming to a conclusion, "Why don't I tell Ron tonight and you can tell Hermione if she doesn't already know?"

"She already knows." Ginny said. "But don't you think that we should tell Ron together. He's the one I'm worried most about."

"Actually, I think it will be easier telling Ron then all of the others. He either is going to except it or kill me cleanly. Your other brothers will probably torture me for awhile before finishing me off." Harry teased.

"They aren't that bad Harry." Ginny chastised hitting him playfully. "But I do think you should take Ron's wand before you tell him. There's no telling what he's capable of."

"Okay, but first I think we should talk about this." Harry said leading Ginny over to the couch in their living room. When Harry sat down he was barely conscious of the fact that he had placed a loving hand on Ginny's stomach softly caressing her stomach that would soon be swollen with his child.

"I don't think we can hide our relationship much longer Harry." Ginny said. "I'm not going to hide the fact that I'm having your child. I don't want to and I don't care if it puts me in danger of Voldemort or anyone else."

"I'm not going to ask you to Gin." Harry said interrupting her rant. "I want the world to know that I love you and that were going to be together forever. Plus with what the reporters saw today I don't think that it's a secret anymore. We should try to keep this from the public as long as possible. Once they figure out that you are pregnant they are going to put two and two together. Let's just hope that the war will be over before that happens. I have a feeling that it's going to be over within the year."

"We can only hope Harry." Ginny agreed. "Now, to more pressing matters. I don't want to buy a house yet so I was thinking that we could change the office into the baby's room. It would be a lot less stressful."

"I couldn't agree more." Harry said closing the distance between them kissing her softly as if closing the matter. "Now we have to get ready to go over to Ron and Hermione's. Their expecting us for dinner and if we don't show up soon I don't think there is going to be any food left with the way Ron eats. Now that Hermione is pregnant I don't think we should count on them having food at their house at all."

"Just like we don't." Ginny said offhandedly making Harry smile. Ginny and Harry made their way to Ron and Hermione's place. Through out dinner Ginny kept on getting looks from Hermione which no man can ever make out without some experience with them. Harry distinctively saw a glace at the beginning of dinner that asked 'Did you tell him?' Ginny just shook her head in confirmation. Then he was getting looks pointed toward him from Ginny saying that he needed to tell Ron still.

"Ron, can I talk to you?" Harry said looking just as nervous as Ron did this morning.

"Sure Harry." Ron said noticing Harry's nervousness. "What is it?"

"In private." Harry said not wanting to be overheard by anybody. Ginny gave him an encouraging smile.

"Sure." Ron said curious now. Harry and Ron went up to the library which was covered in privacy charms because this is where they discussed Voldemort and their plans. When Ron closed the door Harry put up some of his own privacy charms. He didn't want this to get out. It was bad enough that Voldemort knew about Ginny, he didn't need him to find out about the baby also. At least until he was ready for it.

"Now, what is this about Harry?" Ron asked noticing that Harry looked nervous again.

"It's about Ginny." Harry simply said getting to the point.

"What about her? Is she alright?" Ron said getting a little concerned as to why Harry looked so nervous. "Did you have a fight?"

"She's fine." Harry said looking at his feet. "But… She's pregnant." Harry said now looking up at his best mate and wondering if he should get ready to defend himself. Ron just stood there trying to comprehend what Harry was telling him. Then it hit him…

"I understand." Ron said surprising Harry. "Look, Harry, if you had your way you two would have been married the day she finished school. I know you two love each other and I know that you are going to be there for her through all of this. I can count on you to take care of her and treat her the way she should be."

"I know that I might not have always been the easiest person to deal with when it came to your relationship with my sister but it was never because I didn't like it. I couldn't ask for a better person to take care of my sister for the rest of her life. You two are perfect for each other and I know you will make her happy. Plus, these things happen. I'm going through it myself right now. All I can say, Harry, is that you will make an excellent father and Ginny will be an excellent mother. I'm happy for you two. I would have preferred if you were married but you two don't have that choice right now do you?"

"I'm glad you understand Ron." Harry said. "I didn't plan for this to happen but I'm not going to say that I don't want it. I want to have a family with Ginny; I just didn't really want it when we are still in the middle of this war. I still have to fulfill the prophecy and I could very well not make through this war. I just wanted to ask you…"

"You don't have to ask Harry, she's my sister." Ron interrupted him already knowing what Harry was going to ask.

"I just want to make sure that Ginny and this baby will have what they need if I can't be here to give it to them." Harry continued. "I know Ginny can take care of herself but if she doesn't make it through this war either I want to make sure that our child will have a loving home to go to where he can ask question about us and get truthful answers. I don't want him to end up like I did and grow up in a home where he isn't cared about"

"That won't happen Harry." Ron said. "Hermione and I won't let it. You can count on us just like I can count on you. Come on we better get back to the girls before they think that I've hexed you." Ron said finishing the conversation.