Chapter 9: Romanticism
The time that Gin and Hugo spent in Richmond was the most idyllic time in Gin's life. They half-bundled up against the occasional chills and walked all over the city, no destination in mind, and wandered not caring where they ended up. The conversations were endless and almost unbroken, starting one morning and continuing on through the day and into the night. They ignored the owls that brought them letters, sending the owls away with treats but piling the missives on the little kitchen table in piles. The city existed only for them, to let them once again move from tentative awkwardness to something intimate, something new and altogether timeless. For Gin it was as if the interlude of Leda never happened except for the occasional comment from someone she'd known when she'd assumed that identity. After those little interruptions happened she and Hugo continued as if nothing had happened.
One night she'd even left Hugo sleeping soundly and turned on a small light in the corner, placed a blank canvas and just let everything pour out of her. It was if everything that had lain sleeping, submerged, hidden suddenly erupted and she could not stop herself. Concrete depictions of objects just wouldn't do, and the piece turned into an abstract flowering of relief. She knew Hugo was sleeping in her bed. Her bed. After everything that had happened, after all of the horrible things that she'd done to him she knew that he had truly just let it all go. He just wanted to be with her. He was hers, and she was his. That was all that mattered. At that moment she knew utterly, irrecoverably, that she would never let her fears take over again. She took that part of herself, the part that doubted, the part that hid behind her sarcasm and façade of bitchiness, for lack of a better word; she took that part and cast it out. It would never harm her again, it would never take her over, consume her, turn what she knew into doubt.
She stood in front of the canvas, amazed at her color choice. She'd never used such vibrant and bold lines, she'd always been more of a classical portrait painter, dabbling in other areas, but this was something else, a revelation, a sea change, something more. As she stood back from the canvas the overwhelming feeling that filled her, seemed to leak from every pore was one of relief.
"Wow. That's different." Hugo came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, crossing his arms over her chest, pulling her into him. She leaned back and he rested his chin on the top of her head. "What do you call that?"
"I have no idea." She reached up and put her hand on one of his arms, feeling the strength in him. "It just came out."
"You do know its morning, right?" He kissed the top of her head. "Are you tired?"
"No. I feel like I could run from here to Stintborough." She turned around and faced him, wrapping her arms around his waist. "But I should probably clean up. Rather a mess."
"Hang the mess. Come back to bed."
Gin held on to Hugo's hand for dear life as they walked towards Colony House. Hugo had made the arrangements before they'd left Richmond; they were meeting their parents for a small welcome back dinner. The conversation before they left was hard for Gin, as she was keenly aware of how she'd be viewed by some people, the flaky artist who lost it before Hugo came and returned her to reality. Hugo had done more than return her to 'sanity'; he'd restored her to herself, the confident Gin. She was no longer the meek, hurt little girl who always felt as if she'd say the wrong thing, she was Virginia Pauline Boyd again, the same woman who as a schoolgirl had reveled in her 'mudblood' status and enjoyed throwing it in her Slytherin housemates faces, using it as a weapon instead of a detriment. Hugo said her eyes shined again. She wasn't going to let anything change that, and if people couldn't accept that they could go sincerely fuck themselves.
When they arrived via Floo their parents sat up rapidly and welcomed them back. After hugging her parents Virginia was surprised by the intensity of Ron's hug. After finally letting her go he looked at her and gave her a large, lopsided grin.
"You have no idea how good it is to see you two together."
Virginia knew that she blushed, something that hardly ever happened, but she couldn't help it. "I understand I owe you a large thank you."
He stepped away from her and assumed his 'aw shucks' demeanor, as her dad called it. "Ah, yeah, well…enough of that."
The meal went by in a heightened sense of giddiness but with a distinct undercurrent of tension. All of the parents were happy to see their children, but an unspoken sense of relief flowed through the table. Hermione was the one person who Gin knew still had reservations, as Gin saw her glance down and then look over to Ron quickly when Hugo took her hand. Instead of asking the obvious questions, whether or not Hugo and Virginia were still engaged, the talk focused on the future of Gin and Mary Caroline's galleries, Hugo's remaining Auror training, and everything else under the sun. Gin halted her fork during dessert when the Chudley Cannon's current state of play became an extended topic. She knew then that everyone was skirting around the obvious topic.
When the evening came to an end, though, she knew that it would soon become obvious to everyone what lay in her and Hugo's future.
"Ready to head home, Hugo?" Ron stood near the fireplace with Hermione. "You've got to report tomorrow, right?"
"Um…" Hugo looked over to Gin. "Not tonight, Dad. We've got other arrangements."
Hank looked over at his daughter. Before the last week Gin might have been slightly embarrassed, but nothing could faze her. She was feeling no pain for the first time in so long that she just didn't care. "We're staying at Mione's. For now." She looked over to Hugo, and he nodded. "Until we can find our own place."
Hermione didn't say a word, she simply took Ron's hand, went to the fireplace and soon they had Flooed back to their house. After they'd left Gin looked over at her mum. "Well, that went as well as could be expected."
"Hugo, would you mind helping me for a moment? I want to put the garden chairs in the shed in case it rains." Melody glanced over at Hank, and then looked back to Hugo. "Only take a few minutes."
Hugo agreed quickly, and after the two of them left the house Gin looked over at her dad. "Wow. Subtle."
"Give her a break, Gin. There's a reason she was in Hufflepuff and not Slytherin." Hank went over to the sofa, sat down and patted the cushion next to him.
Gin had expected it at some point, just not that early on. After sitting down on the sofa she moved to where her back was against the arm, kicked off her shoes and pulled her feet up on the cushion. After a deep breath she moved he hair out of her face. "Fire away."
"Well." Hank pushed his glasses to the top of his head. "Obviously your mother and I were worried to death about you. You just disappeared, Gin. And then when you came back and saw Hugo, and, well, you know, that made us worry even more. Now you and Hugo are back, and it's as if none of that even happened."
"Oh no, Dad. I definitely happened. We've talked about it, more than you could ever guess. It's weird; it's almost made us stronger."
"Life's funny sometimes." He stared over at the fireplace and was silent for a while. "You know, when your mom and I first started dating…I wonder what would have happened if hadn't ended up at St. Mungo's. You know that story, right?"
She nodded. "Yeah, you were out on a date with that witch that used to work at Madame Malkin's, got attacked by the WLF, Mum went and saw you at hospital. Mum told me."
"Right, well, um, shit, Gin. I'm not going to tell you what to do, but I am going to warn you that there are going to be some people that aren't going to trust you with Hugo."
"Like Hermione."
"Yeah." He rubbed his goatee for a moment. "You have to understand, Hugo's her baby. She made it through his enlistment and the war, so she's very protective of him. You'll understand someday when you have kids."
They sat there silently for a while until Gin remembered something. "Dad, when Mary Caroline came back and told you that Hugo and I didn't take the portkey, after that you sent him a letter. What did you say? He wouldn't tell me."
"Oh, yeah." He smiled and chuckled. "I just told him to remember you're a Stones girl, not a Beatles girl."
"What the fuck does that mean?"
"Skip the sappy stuff."
Gin felt Hugo move to turn off the alarm clock and then the warmth of his skin was against her again. She rolled over slightly to move into him, putting her head against his shoulder and sliding an arm over his stomach.
"I wish you didn't have to go."
He put his hand on hers. "We knew we'd have to come back to the real world eventually."
"What is the real world, anyway? The Daily Prophet, people going to work, all of that. It can all just go to hell."
"I wish, Polly, but I have to report in today. Can't avoid it." He reached up and ran a hand through her hair. "You know we're going to get a lot of questions. You're in for most of them. Ready for all that?"
"They won't know what hit them." She tried to hold on to him as he sat up and moved out of bed. Her arm ended up stretched across the bed. "When do you finish for the day?"
"Don't know." He rubbed his eyes as he sat on the side of the bed. "Depends. I'll be back as soon as I can."
"I know." Gin fell back into the pillows, her hair cascading around her face. "Go on, I'll start breakfast. Mione's house elf will probably already have it going, but she's not used to feeding a Weasley appetite. I'll see you downstairs."
He leaned over and gave her a long, lingering kiss. "You have any plans? Tonight?"
She wondered about him as there was something different about his voice, as it held a faint echo of anticipation. She shook her head. "No. Just you."
"Merlin, woman, you make it hard to get out of bed."
She reached up and gave him another kiss. "Good."
Mione wrapped a robe around herself and made her way downstairs, not surprised to find Mione's house elf at the foot of the stairs inquiring about breakfast. What did surprise her was that Mione and Scorpius were already up and dressed, both of them drinking tea and reading the paper. Mary Caroline sat there as well, looking like she could use another five or six hours of sleep, two hands wrapped around her coffee cup as if willing it to give her the elixir of life.
"Morning everybody." Gin adjusted her robe and sat down. "So what's on tap today?"
Hugo sat down as well after fixing his cup of tea. "You already know my schedule. How long until the food…"
Mione's house assured Hugo that breakfast would be forthcoming, and after her exit Scorpius sat down the paper. "Well, I have a meeting at two with a Spanish delegation. Won't bother you with the details or I'd put the lot of you to sleep."
"Training." Mione sat the sport section of The Daily Prophet on the table. "The All-England side will be chosen soon for the World Cup."
Gin looked over at Mary Caroline and nudged her elbow. "What happened to you? You look horrible."
"I feel horrible." She shook her head. "Went out with Finn last night and we were out way too late. Early. Whatever. We need to stop by the gallery. Some artist you contacted is bringing in some pieces this afternoon."
"You'll be done by eight, though, right?" Hugo gave Mary Caroline a concerned look and Gin's suspicions grew. "I mean, I'll probably be done by then."
"If we're still there at eight I want someone to bury me in my lavender dress because I most certainly will have died." Mary Caroline shook her head. "I have got to tell that man we don't have to go out drinking every night."
Luckily for all parties involved Mary Caroline did not die of her hangover, and after a hangover potion and a four espresso latte she and Gin made their way to their gallery. The sign had not yet been hung, as they still hadn't decided on the logo, but everything else was ready. The two partners spent most of their morning catching up on paperwork, doing final touches and chatting about Mary Caroline's budding romance with Finn Waters.
At two that afternoon the artist Mortimer Sedgewick brought over his canvases, walked through the gallery and gave his recommendations on the order in which the paintings should be hung. They were mostly landscapes focused on locations that were, as it was commonly known, the Potter Trail. A lucrative tourism industry had sprung up after the defeat of Voldemort for people who wanted to see the places where the historic events had happened, and Gin worried about what her godparents would say when they came to the official opening. Even though the event was two weeks away Gin thought she'd better have lunch with Ginny soon to give her some advance warning.
Once the paperwork with Sedgewick had been completed Mary Caroline went back to their little office and conjured a very large, comfortable chair and proceeded to take a nap, leaving Gin to her own devices. She puttered at her desk for a while, not really doing much, and finally decided to check out their studio.
As she walked through the studio, light streaming in from the ceiling to floor windows, Gin knew that they had made the right decision to carve out that much space to give each of them a working area to do their own work. Mary Caroline's watercolor canvas sat on her easel, partially completed, and Gin admired the way her partner could do so much with a medium that was hard for her. She preferred oils as the paint was much more substantial.
The opening of the door caught her off guard, as she didn't know who would be stopping by. It had to be her mum as her Dad was back at Hogwarts. After walking out of their studio and into the main area of the gallery she stopped suddenly, as it was not her mum, it was Hermione Weasley.
"It looks very nice, Virginia." Hermione glanced over at a painting on the wall. Is that…"
Gin nodded. "Yes, it's Privet Drive." She watched Hermione stand in front of the painting and knew immediately that it wouldn't be a friendly little chat. Hermione's bushy hair was pulled back as best as possible into a little bun, she was wearing her Ministry robes and it was half three in the afternoon. Ron always said you could set your watch by Hermione's work schedule, and the fact that she had taken time out of her day, with the job that she held, put Gin on edge.
"Well. Not something I would buy, but I'm sure someone will find it compelling." She turned towards Gin. "Do you have time for a cup of tea?"
"Of course." Gin nodded. "Follow me; we have a little kitchen in the back.
The two witches made their way through the gallery, Gin's slight heels clicking on the floor while Hermione's more sensible shoes made no sound. After going through the preparations of tea the polite, small talk phase of the visit was over and Gin steeled herself for the conversation she knew was coming.
Hermione took a deep breath. "Virginia, I'm not sure exactly how…"
Gin held up her hand, bracelets jingling slightly. "Mrs. Weasley, I had a talk with Dad and I think I know why you're here. If I could take things back or change things, I thought I would, and there are parts that I definitely would rather avoid, but Hugo and I have talked about it. I know I hurt him horribly. I would change that. But if anything it's brought us closer together." She angled her head slightly. "Did he tell you everything?"
"Well, no, he was rather evasive."
Gin took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She knew that if she was to ever have a real relationship with Hermione she had to tell her everything. She did. She told her about Italy, about her fears of being 'Auror arm-candy' and being expected to turn out legions of red-headed Weasley boys. She told her about Chance. After registering Hermione's surprise she then told her about her reconciliation with Hugo, the days in Richmond and about how Hugo was the kindest, most understanding man she'd ever known.
Hermione's tea had grown cold as she'd listened to Gin recount everything. As she'd listened to what had happened she found herself turning her wedding ring slightly, only realizing it when had noticed it and paused. She couldn't believe what Gin had been through in Richmond, as Ron had kept that part from her. She had known that something had happened as Hugo had written Ron, and after reading the letter her husband's face had turned dark. He'd left to see Harry right after that and wouldn't tell her the details. The intent of her visit to Gin's gallery had changed dramatically in the space of their conversation, and she knew what she must do. She reached out and took Gin's hand.
"I am so sorry that happened to you. I'm very sorry. I'm also sorry for what I had planned to do today." She let go of Gin's hand, reached into her robe and took out a small bundle of letters and placed them on the table. "I wrote these to you after you sent back Hugo's ring, but I never sent them. You have to understand, seeing him like that, I…"
"I know." Gin nodded and stared at the letters.
"Do what you want with them. Read them, throw them away, it's up to you. But you have to understand, Virginia, he's my son. My only son. And after making it through the war I…oh, throw them away." She looked Gin in the eyes, holding her gaze. "You love him, don't you?"
"More than anything in my life."
Hermione stood up abruptly and smoothed out her robes. "Good. Because he loves you. But if…"
Gin stood up as well. "I know. I won't take that for granted. Ever." She felt her heart beating rapidly as Hermione came over to her. She didn't know what to expect, but when Hermione pulled her into a hug her shoulders relaxed. At that moment she realized that her muscles had been tense from the moment Hermione had walked into the gallery.
After they broke apart Hermione nodded her chin. "Yes, well, let's just keep this little visit between us. The boys don't need to know about it, do they?"
He's up to something. Gin walked beside Hugo down the rainy London streets, holding one of his hands as he held an umbrella with the other. They were in the Muggle part of the city, a part that Gin had been to a few times but she knew Hugo had only been once before. Usually she played tour guide when they went to new places or parts of the city that he wasn't as familiar with but this time he seemed to actually know where he was going. She thought about teasing him about it but something kept her quiet.
When they turned into the little Chinese restaurant she let her guard down, as the place was one of her parents' favorites, she'd been there many times, and it was only about half-full. The red dragon statutes flanked the entrance to the dining room, and after following the hostess to a little booth in the back she decided that whatever happened she was, for once, just going to go with it. After ordering drinks and two appetizers she looked over at him. "Hungry for Chinese, huh? Where'd you hear about this place?"
"Oh, um, one of the guys said he'd had takeaway from here the other day and it was rather good." Hugo looked at his menu quickly. "Um, yeah, it's really good."
After ordering their main dishes they fell into a normal conversation and Gin felt herself relax. Hugo seemed more at ease, but when she brought up the fact that they probably needed to find someplace other than Mione and Scorpius' place to live Hugo started messing about with the soy sauce. He pulled his napkin off of his lap, sopped up the spilled sauce and stood up rapidly. "Um, I'll be right back. Loo. Um, yeah."
Gin put her purse on the table and took out a little compact to check her makeup. She knew he was acting strangely, and she knew why. He was going to ask her to marry him again. The fact that when she'd brought up living arrangements he had gone all wonky was one sign, not to mention that if she remembered correctly this restaurant was not only one of her parents' favorites it was one of the places they used to come when they were dating. The fact that she had said 'sure' when he had asked her last time was at the forefront of her mind, as well as the fact that he had wanted to do the big, grand gesture, but she had robbed him of that. Not this time. It was all she could do to not smile from ear to ear.
Hugo slid into the booth looking very relieved. "Really needed the loo. Much better."
"Good, I don't have an extra set of trousers for you in my bag. I can't fit a trunk's worth of stuff for you in my purse like your mum."
He laughed a little too loudly. "That's a good one. Yeah, mum's purse. Fit almost anything in there."
The waiter stopped by with their dishes, but also a small plate that held two fortune cookies. Instead of letting the diners pick which one was theirs the waiter sat one down in front of Hugo and put the plate in front of Gin.
After the waiter left Gin looked over to Hugo. "Aren't these supposed to come at the end?"
He shrugged. "Something new. Try it, why be traditional?"
Gin picked up the cookie and felt the weight immediately. After cracking the shell there it was, the ring that she had sent back. Hugo's ring. Her ring. The paper slip that traditionally carries the pithy saying only had two words. Marry me. She looked over and Hugo was next to her, on his knee.
"Polly, it hasn't been easy, and I know it won't be from here on out. Even when things were at their worst, and you have to admit it was pretty bad, what hurt the most was that I never stopped loving you. I'm sure I never will stop loving you. I want to keep on doing that the rest of my life. Virginia Pauline Boyd, will you marry me?"
Gin bit her lip as she looked down at him. After everything that had happened, the war, Richmond, Leda, everything, she had never stopped loving him. There he was, down on one knee, and she knew, more certainly than she had ever known about anything in the world. "Yes, Hugo. Yes, of course I'll marry you."
He took the ring and slid it onto her finger. As soon as that happened the applause shocked her, and when she looked up from Hugo she could see the entire staff of the restaurant, the waiter, hostess, waitresses, bartenders, even the cook with his white apron, standing around them and applauding.