Disclaimer: Dis the claimer? :O
M'kay, I wasn't going to include dis particular gem in dis story; I was going to make dis a separate one-shot, but then I looked at the genre, and yaadaa, yaadaa, yaadaa, and decided that it fit in the Family genre, so I thought, "Aha! Why ever not?" 'cuz, ya see, I too slothful to write a new summary, and title, and all that crap and I thought it'd be -cough- clever to show how de children -blushes- came to be, so, beware, dis chapter does contain just a peck more romance than de previous - ahem - chapters. Nothing inappropriate, I assure you. (Unless you count this paragraph)
And why are you still reading this? Go, shoo, story time, now.
A bright, tranquil morning soothed the Weasley matriarch as she bustled around the kitchen in preparation for an early breakfast with her husband and daughter. They were the only ones present in the Burrow while the others were dispersed towards their respectful workplaces. On a brighter note, all eight of the Weasleys – including their spouses, children, and Harry and Hermione – would be home by dinner, much to Molly's delight.
Her husband, though, was currently sleeping on the couch in the living room where he had tossed his exhausted self onto the day before. His wife had tried to waken him but to no avail. He simply drew the pillow over his wide mouth and resume his snoring. His wife sighed in amusement.
Her daughter, on the other hand, was bright awake, which was very unusual for the youngest Weasley. In fact, she was currently assisting her mother with the dishes. Molly was delighted to spend time bonding with her chatty daughter. She had won a game with her team the day before which caused her to light up the taciturn atmosphere with her child-like enthusiasm.
Molly simply listened, despite her disapproval towards her daughter's career. Yet if it made her daughter happy, well, she wouldn't have it any other way. Her chatter reminded the mother of a small red-haired girl who never seemed to know the meaning of quiet.
"I was really close to disqualification, Mum," Ginny's braid skipped back and forth as its owner gestured wildly with her hands, "I had accidently overstepped the boundaries a bit until I got a shout from the other side to keep my eyes on the Quaffle," she grumbled, "I was only telling Aoife to hurry it up with the Snitch. I didn't realize where I was going."
"Yes, but don't you think you should've been worrying about your own position first, dear?" asked Molly cautiously. Quidditch was a bit exotic to her. She could almost relate to Hermione's oblivious nature towards the renowned sport.
"Keep siding with Gwenog, Mum," she replied grumpily, pouting her lips and letting out a small exasperated huff, "She said the exact same."
Molly chuckled helplessly and reached for daughter's forearm. "But you can't deny that she is a dear; she was ever-so polite when she came visiting last time."
Ginny snorted and busied her hands with the dishes again. "You think that way about everyone – and yes," she added when she caught her mother's doubtful countenance, "You do. You don't notice yourself. But whatever, anyway. At least we won, right?"
Ginny smiled as her mother nodded in return. Molly then reoccupied her position near the stove while her daughter resumed cleaning the dishes. They both fell deep into a comfortable silence until they were rudely interrupted by molten lava.
Both women were startled to see a messy-haired young man stumble – rather ungracefully – out of the fireplace. He cursed as he brushed the ashes off his work cloak, fixed his glasses, and attempted to flatten his hair before lifting his head to peer at the amused eyes of his best mate's sister and the disapproving eyes of his surrogate mother. Harry winced.
"Oh, sorry, Mrs. Weasley. I'm a bit in a hurry."
"Oh, Harry, dear," Molly stepped forward to greet him with a sweeping embrace, "Where have you been? We haven't seen you all week." Molly reproved while Harry and Ginny traded furtive smiles in greeting.
"I've been on a mission," he said in a casual manner that suggested the usual emphasize: that the information was classified and he couldn't talk about it.
"And?" Molly urged, raising a flaming eyebrow as she eyed the fidgety young man shifting on his feet.
"It went well, I s'pose," Harry finished, smiling reassuringly at her concerned gaze. He threw a glare at Ginny, who had her tongue stuck out in mock-apathy, "But I need a favor to ask."
"Don't tell me," said Ginny, drying her damp fingers just as she finished putting the last of the dishes away. Frighteningly, a smirk gradually sketched its way onto her freckled features as she turned towards the visitor, "The great Harry Potter needs saving from mount loads of paperwork, am I right?"
"Ginny!" her mother admonished while fighting back a smile. She was told all about these two and their playful relationship. In fact, they hardly ever concealed it themselves, not that she disapproved. It made her wonder about that special day that she knew was soon to come.
Harry looked hurriedly at his watch as he answered in an identical tone, "Yes, and Ginny Weasley'll be my hero," he said dryly, causing Ginny to elicit a mischievous grin and Molly to elicit a small tsk, "It's Teddy, actually. I need someone to watch him while I'm gone – he's at Grimmald's Place right now," he added as he caught sight of their bemused expressions. Harry had never had a problem with the Metamorphmagus since Teddy was a baby.
"Why? Where's Andromeda?" Ginny looked bewildered, obviously not expecting the answer she received.
"You left him on his own?" Molly exclaimed, being the ever protective hen of her little ones, "Harry!"
Harry seemed incapable of forming a proper, coherent sentence, "Well, Andromeda's sick, and I thought she could use a little break, and well – I – I need someone to watch him. I mean, he's asleep right now, and I don't want to wake him," he mumbled guiltily as a worried expression dominated his features.
Molly, however, was not finished. She proceeded to rant about the importance of taking care of children to Harry, who was looking, if possible, guiltier. Ginny, on the other hand, had retreated a few steps back and proceeded to watch the exchange amusedly.
Funny how her mother was chiding Harry for leaving Teddy alone when they were both here, and Teddy was still alone. Although, Ginny knew that there wasn't really any harm to it. Grimmald's Place was extolled for its security.
Taking advantage of the situation, Ginny could not stop her eyes from occasionally drifting towards a certain raven-haired male.
He had grown over the years, giving him a confident posture despite his current slightly hunched position. He still seemed incapable of gaining the proper weight that her mother desired, yet Ginny thought it suited him nicely. And despite his tragic past, the years were incapable of stealing the aura of kindness and warmth that seemed to radiate off of him every time he entered a room.
The most endearing feature, though, was his eyes. It did not help that he was currently wearing dark robes along with his dark hair and pale face, with the eyes placing the most emphasize.
If anyone were to ask her what she found most endearing, she would most definitely respond with her brightest light, an intriguing color.
'Of course you would,' murmured a sickly sweet voice in her head that reminded her of that demon Rita Skeeter. The thought was so nauseating that she was quickly shaken out of her trance like lightening.
"I'll do it," Ginny interjected rather loudly. She had finally allowed the tiniest bit of sympathy to settle over her as she spoke, "I'll watch him."
She watched as her mother's features fused into one of surprise, and Harry's to one of immense gratitude. Judging by their expressions, Ginny concluded that they had forgotten all about Teddy.
The situation was closed now, but Ginny was never one to pride herself as being a peacemaker. On the contrary, she loved to place great emphasize towards her contentious attitude instead.
"Alright, then, dear," Molly reconciled, padding towards one of the cloak-hangers to grab her daughter's cloak, "Be home by dinner, then – both of you," she added towards Harry as well, "And Harry, do be careful next time, alright?"
Both Harry and Ginny nodded obediently. Ginny grabbed her cloak from her mother with a small "thanks" before turning towards Harry, who was casting discreet cautious glances at Molly.
"Shall we?"
"Thanks, Ginny," Harry said honestly, stepping forward to peck the top of her head in farewell, causing her to elicit a roguish smile. He didn't dare attempt anything else while her mother was here. Then, he turned to embrace Molly before heading out the door. They heard a small pop in indication that he was gone. Ginny, in turn, sighed and grabbed a handful of Floo Powder from a pot beside the fireplace.
"See you, Mum."
"Take care, dear."
With that final note, Ginny accompanied the ashes towards their destination.
Unlike the Chosen One, Ginny landed upright and was entirely infallible upon her landing. Years of experience had assuaged the trepidation and nausea that accompanied these landings; she was completely and utterly confident now.
As she swept the dust off her cloak, she turned to observe the changes of the once dreary house that went by the name "Grimmald's Place". After the war, Harry had taken it upon himself to transform the house's archaic atmosphere into something much more inviting and alluring. With the help of the newly found respect from Kreacher, it was an undemanding job, requiring little to no effort from the both of them.
The house now bore a peaceful atmosphere, drenching its visitors with comfortable warmth. It was almost entirely family-friendly now, not to mention appropriate with the absence of the elves' heads. All in all, the house certainly accented Harry and Teddy's personalities rather well.
However, Ginny had only visited a few times, and they all included watching over Teddy. The downside of having the refurbished Grimmald's Place was that both Harry and Teddy had a tendency of locking themselves up in it, hardly ever peeking out of their rabbit hole. Ginny scowled at the thought. She allowed her creativity to form a spontaneous plan to get them both spot on their feet.
"Mistress Weasley," A croak startled her out of her thought. Startled, she clutched her chest and gasped in trepidation. She had become so lost in her ingenious plan, "Kreacher apologizes for startling the Mistress."
Ginny shook her head in response and hastily collected herself again before turning towards the now-cleaner and healthier house elf (with the insistence of Harry, of course). He appeared a bit worried that he had done something as simple as startling her.
"No, it wasn't your fault, really," Ginny reassured. She had taken quite a liking towards the well-mannered house elf, "I was a bit distracted."
She chuckled nervously, still attempting to collect herself. Kreacher, however, didn't look convinced. In an attempt (in what he thought) to gain back her respect, he held out his arms and politely asked, "May Kreacher be allowed to hang Mistress's cloak, then?"
Ginny bit her lip, fighting an inner battle. She didn't want to offend him by offering to hang her cloak herself. She knew that house-elves liked those sort of things. But she couldn't deny that Harry was far more experienced towards the subject of house-elves than she ever would.
In the end, she gave in and allowed him to hang her cloak. He appeared blissfully oblivious towards her guilty look but merely appeared happy at the service.
"Kreacher?" Ginny asked uncertainly, watching the house elf hang up her cloak, "Do you happen to know where Teddy is?"
"Master Teddy is asleep now," Kreacher responded, happily tending to her questions, "Master Teddy is currently residing in Master Harry's room, Mistress."
So Teddy was having nightmares again. Ginny frowned worriedly at the thought. She wondered if all orphans suffered from occasional bouts of nightmares.
"Is he alright?"
"Master Teddy is still having nightmares, Mistress. And nightmares worry Master Harry. Oh yes, Kreacher knows it. Kreacher sees it," Kreacher said. He had become startlingly empathetic with Harry, to the point where he tried his best to comfort his master, "Would Mistress like a spot of tea?
Still slightly worried, she shook her head distractedly in response before turning back towards Kreacher with a fond smile. "Thanks, Kreacher, but I'm feeling a bit tired myself; I think I'll just take a nap until Teddy wakes up."
"Shall Kreacher inform Mistress Weasley when Master Teddy awakens?"
Ginny nearly snorted. Her plans did consist of Master Teddy, and he must be awakened as soon as possible.
"No, that's alright, but thanks anyway."
Ginny smiled as Kreacher bowed towards her. She left the room, still deep in her thoughts as she pondered about Teddy's situation. She concluded that both Harry and Teddy needed a stress-free day, one that didn't consist of nightmares or work, one where they forgot all their problems and just became young and blissfully carefree again.
Then it dawned on her.
She would give them a break, alright, even if she had lasso them out of the house herself.
Smirking evilly, Ginny then ascended the remarkable amount of stairs towards where she knew Teddy laid. Every time she thought of that sweet, clumsy boy she felt overwhelmed by the exotic feelings that he seemed to have planted in her. She supposed that it came from the way she thought of him, akin to a son or perhaps a younger brother.
Reaching her landing, Ginny creaked open the door carefully, recalling Harry's warning that Teddy was still asleep. Indeed he was. The sight that greeted her was a small brown-haired head that was slowly and gradually fusing into blond. The boy obliviously slept on, in midst of a large bundle of blankets. Ginny chuckled at the sight.
Ginny furtively crept across to the other side of the enormous bed, careful not to trip on anything. When she reached the other side, she peered down at the tranquil features of the small son of one of her best friends. She simply adored him.
Quietly and stealthily, she laid down beside him on the warm and comfortable bed, grabbed a stray Quill on the bedside table, and proceeded to float the feather right along the tip of the boy's nose. He grimaced slightly and scratched his nose. Ginny attempted to stifle an inevitable giggle behind her free hand. Though she did feel a bit guilty, especially since he was sleep-deprived because of his nightmares, but Teddy was always amusing when he was awakened. She just couldn't stop herself.
Naturally, Ginny waited patiently for a few minutes and tried again. This time, she got a reaction.
The boy clenched his comforter closer to his chin, tightening his shut eyelids even further. He mumbled a frustrated "cut it out" before diving into his dreams once more. But Ginny wouldn't let him, not until the sloth unfolded his eyes to greet the bright morning's sun.
He did just that as his final patience effaced. Growling exasperatedly, he cautiously squinted open his eyes to peer at the watery brown eyes of Ginny Weasley.
For a moment, he did nothing but stare and blink confusedly at the girl as she let out another hearty laugh. As yesterday's events came crashing back, he scowled.
"Ginny!" Teddy whined, upset that she had awaken him far too early.
"Oh, don't whine, Ted," she reproved, disappointed by the contagious slothfulness that the house seemed to have encouraged, "You and Harry have been locked up in this cave for who knows how long. And who sleeps through the morning, hmm?"
"We've only been here since yesterday," he replied curtly, and Ginny couldn't stifle the exaggerated chuckle that escaped from her, "And I sleep through the morning as matter of fact, and you," he added accusingly, as if Ginny had been the cause of a major calamity to his dream world, "woke me up."
He finished the statement with an abrupt toss of his blankets over his head and turned his back towards her. Ginny knew exactly where he had learned that attitude from of course. She raised her eyebrows in amusement as she wrapped her arms around the small bundle of blankets. She nearly smirked as he fought against her in an effort to escape from behind bars.
"Say you're sorry, young man!"
"No!" came a muffled yell from beneath the blankets. She could hear him giggling as well.
Determined to teach him some manners that had obviously not been taught by his own godfather, Ginny playfully laid her head onto the mountain of blankets, supposing that maybe Harry needed some discipline first. But she would worry about that later. Right now, she had other businesses to take care of. One of them consisted of a small bundle of blankets still wrapped tightly in her arms.
"Alright, then, you can stay in there," Ginny said in a mocking tone while tightening her arms around her new-found Teddy Bear.
"But I can't breathe, Ginny."
"Password to breathe?"
"I'm going to tell Harry!"
"Harry's not here. Wrong again!"
"I'm going to die; have mercy!"
"Sorry, Teddy, but it's justice before mercy."
She heard Teddy let out an exasperated huff at her sarcastic comment. In the end, she won, just as she predicted.
"I'm sorry, okay?"
With her arms still wrapped around her fluffy Ted, Ginny sought for an opening for him to stick his head out through. He did, albeit with a small gasp and a deep scowl as he squirmed around in her arms to face her.
"I'm telling Gran you're the next Dark-Lord."
Giggling slightly, she replied with a domineering tone, "Ginny Weasley, the next Dark Lord. I like the sound of that, especially since Harry Potter's got to get rid of me, right? Just that, and he'll bury himself before he had a chance to say hello, won't he?" she winked jokingly.
Teddy grinned back in return as his eyes suddenly fused into an identical shade of brown as hers.
"Can I go back to sleep now?" Teddy asked through a large yawn. He reminded Ginny of Tonks's dreaded early mornings, "I mean, I don't usually wake up at this time of hour."
"Well, you'd better learn to," she scolded, taking a leaf out of her mother's book now, "I'm going to start getting you and Harry used to a healthy early morning, just you watch."
Teddy, however, didn't look convinced despite her determined countenance. Instead, he shrugged. Ginny pulled him closer to her, began stroking the changing colors of his hair. Within minutes, he promptly fell back into a deep slumber, soothed by the comfort.
Glancing over the boy's hair, Ginny deduced that there was still a couple of hours left before Harry had lunch break. With that last piece of information, she buried her face into the soft wisps of hair. Within seconds, she extinguished like the end of a candle's life.
Five minutes later, or so it seemed, she awoke with no apparent reason. She cursed her insomnia for keeping her up. Although, she did feel a bit stiff, and she wondered why that was. Did she fall asleep after all?
Reluctantly lifting her head out of the soft tufts of hair, the girl yawned and stretched while still pondering about her situation. Carefully, and wary of waking Teddy up, Ginny gently extracted one arm from beneath the slumbering child and wearily sat up. In an attempt to chase the weariness away, she discreetly shut her eyes for a moment. When she opened her jaded eyes once more, she witnessed a sight that rested her case.
She had slept after all.
The girl scowled at the tall figure sprawled beside his dormant godson. Honestly, this was his lunch? Of course he wouldn't get any weight by simply snoring his way out of life. She couldn't even see his face because of the pillow that he had used to shield his eyes from the sun's glare. So this was what Harry Potter's definition of normal was: to become a living marionette?
And then a dawning revelation crashed over. It was so vivid and perfect that she quickly, but attentively, scrambled off the bed to fulfill her plans. With a final fleeting smirk, she cast one last glance at the two before carefully shutting the door, promising to return soon.
Oh, she'll be back alright.
Harry snorted as he heard the door close "carefully". She hadn't even bothered checking to see if he was really asleep or not. she really needed a Mad-Eye Moody to stamp "constant vigilance" on her forehead. Maybe the two of them could be scar-mates, instead.
But Harry would not deny that he also needed to exercise caution towards "mischief managed" especially when it consisted of a devilish smirk and a somewhat stealthy pace to go along with it.
Harry cautiously peeked one eye out from under the pillow and scanned the room. He felt slightly paranoid now. She was Fred and George's sister after all. Harry wouldn't be surprised if he wounded up in the midst of a pit of a volcano, honestly.
Concluding his examination, Harry was still not convinced of her innocence. But there was really only Teddy in the room and he was sound asleep.
Or was he?
Now entirely convinced that he was paranoid, the bespectacled lad gently poked his godson's shoulder, ignoring the feeling of guilt. But Teddy merely growled and shoved the blankets over him in frustration. Harry, on the other hand, wondered if it was wise to accuse a plausible suspect.
"'Morning."
Akin to a small tiger, not to mention the now-flaming hair fit the metaphor perfectly, Teddy slowly slid the blankets down so only his blazing eyes were visible. They glowered at his godfather.
"Harry!"
"Teddy." Teddy's godfather imitated the child. Teddy, in turn, scowled before looking around, rather suspiciously in Harry's opinion.
"Wha – Where's Ginny?" he asked bemusedly. He sat up and surveyed the room for a certain red-haired female until his questioning eyes zoomed back to his slumped godfather, who had thrown the pillow back over his head, accepting whatever mischief was available. He was too tired to care.
Or was he?
"Dunno, do I?" Harry replied in a substantially casual manner that was slightly muffled by the pillow. He slid the pillow slightly down so his narrowed eyes could be free to observe his godson's reaction, inclined to rid Teddy of his "secrets", "I was going to ask you."
"Me?" exclaimed Teddy, taken aback. Harry thought that it was a pitiful façade of innocence, "How could I know? I was asleep."
Too pitiful.
"Yeah, sure you were."
"I was!"
"Then how come I woke you up with only a flick," Harry emphasized by nudging Teddy's forehead with his index finger, "of my finger, hmm?"
Teddy, rubbing his forehead, eyed his godfather in a manner that implied the possibility of shipping his godfather to a mental hospital.
"I woke up when I heard the door closing, alright?"
Harry narrowed his eyes, determining his godson's honesty; Teddy wasn't really an expert at lying. He always had a knack of looking guilty when he did.
Now, however, there was not the slightest sign of a weakness.
Sighing in mock-exasperation, Harry concluded that the paranoia was probably born from his position as an Auror. He buried his face back into the pillow and muttered in a melancholic tone in an attempt to gauge a reaction out of Teddy.
"It's not going to work, Harry," Teddy said, a small smile creeping into his face as he recognized his godfather's usual actions, "I don't know anything. Honest."
"I still don't believe you," he said, his voice still muffled. Teddy opened his mouth in an attempt to mitigate Harry's paranoia with mere words, or shouts, but abruptly halted. The door had creaked open to reveal the said red-haired provocateur.
Ginny froze in her tracks as she caught sight of the unexpected display. She had hoped that both godfather and godson would still be asleep by the time she returned. She wanted to experience the pleasure of waking them up in what Ginny called "the Weasley way".
But it seemed the first part of her plan had failed as her widened eyes spotted them both: Teddy was wide awake, apparently satisfied with his nap. Harry, Ginny noticed with a glare, was still sprawled in the exact same position she had left him in.
As if speaking through Legilimency, Harry lifted the pillow from over his head and peered at her through narrowed eyes.
"You," he said in a deathly quiet tone, causing Ginny to raise an eyebrow in amusement.
"Where have you been?" Teddy demanded with a pout. He frowned as she responded with a creepy and indifferent smile.
She looked a bit different. Teddy supposed that it was merely the clothes. She wore a simple green jumper, brown trousers, complete with a chestnut colored coat, and a knitted green scarf to finish it off. She looked like she was dressed for an outdoor occasion.
"I've been – " Ginny said, mimicking a frown, "out." She finished with an innocent smile and sat at the edge of the bed, facing them with her legs crossed.
The other two, however, scowled at her lack of elaboration. They both opened their mouths again to provoke answers out of the mischievous red-head, but she rudely spoke over them.
"We're going out," she stated bluntly, especially studying Harry's reaction to this unexpected news.
He merely looked surprised, yet still somewhat irritated. Out of all the times she could have invited them, she specifically asked when he had work to return to.
In response to her answer, Harry snatched his pillow away from Teddy's thieving fingers, mock-frowned at his "innocent" countenance, and dropped the pillow back onto his face with a soft thump. He was confident that he would wake up with bruises on his nose tomorrow due to his glasses.
Teddy, finding Harry's example efficient, threw himself backwards as well and sprawled down on the bed beside his god-father, grabbed an extra pillow, and followed Harry's example. Meanwhile, Ginny shook her head disappointedly. Honestly, where had all the liveliness gone?
"Can't," Harry grumbled from beneath the pillow, causing Teddy to snicker quietly. But Ginny didn't seem fazed at all, "Got work in –" he lifted his watch hand and frowned as his lethargic mind processed the information, "ten minutes."
Wait – ten minutes?!
Harry gaped at the watch that was given to him on his seventeenth birthday. He would never be able to make it back in time!
Startling Teddy, he quickly scrambled off the bed, muttering helplessly as he hastily searched for his outdoor cloak, "Sorry, Gin, but I've got to go to work. Maybe some other time."
One would expect that being rejected would cause a normal girl to be upset, but Ginny Weasley was anything but a normal girl. Instead, to Teddy's surprise, a roguish smirk formed on her freckled features.
"Oh, of course," she said in a mocking tone despite her serious expression, "I completely understand the importance of a job."
According to Teddy, that was way too easy, especially if it was coming from someone like Ginny. She didn't really back down easily. To say he was shocked was putting it mildly.
Oblivious to the general occupants of the room, Harry found his cloak, draped it across his shoulders, and fastened the strap before hurrying to the door.
"Thanks, Gin. Knew you'd understand," he said, completely distracted now. He muttered a final farewell and flashed a quick smile before jogging down the stairs towards his respectful destination.
As he left, Teddy (who had now sat up) turned his questioning eyes towards Ginny, who seemed to have placed a permanent sticking charm on her smirk. Not to mention she was constantly checking her watch too.
"Ginny?" Teddy questioned, looking suspicious. She turned her frightening smirk towards him, and Teddy almost cringed away, "What did you do?"
Her countenance immediately fused into one of naïve innocence.
"I haven't done anything."
He was young, alright, but never stupid.
"Yeah, right."
"You don't believe me?" she said, placing a hand on her chest, as if wounded by Teddy's disbelief.
"No."
"You wound me, Teddy."
"You're lying, Ginny. That hurts me more."
Now Ginny appeared amused. She let out an exaggerated sigh before leaning forward, as if sharing her deepest secrets with him. Teddy frowned in return.
"Alright, I'll tell you, but only if you get dressed first."
To say Teddy was taken aback was a fierce understatement. He looked at her in disbelief before crying out, "What? Why?"
"Never you mind, just go do it," Ginny urged while pouting her lips and widening her eyes in persuasion, "Please. For me."
"But –"
"Teddy," she reproved in a somewhat disappointing tone. Her voice slightly quivered, as if stifling a laugh, "As your official godmother, you will do as I say."
Teddy's jaw virtually fell to the floor with that last statement. In response, Ginny clutched her stomach as she continued to cackle with laughter.
Not that Teddy didn't know about Harry's relationship with Ginny, but didn't Ginny have to be married to him first for her to officially become his godmother?
"W – wha –" Teddy stuttered helplessly as he attempted to form a coherent sentence, "B – but I – I thought – that – " Ginny simply continued to find the whole situation amusing, "I mean, you're joking, aren't you?"
And Teddy wished it were true, at least until Harry confirmed this nonsense. And as if sensing his frustration, the bedroom door burst open like the sound of a cannon ball as a frustrated (frustrated was an understatement) Harry stomped in, literally trembling with annoyance.
As soon as Ginny heard the door fly off its rockers, she scrambled for safety behind Teddy and ducked behind him in a pathetic attempt to conceal herself. Although, Teddy could feel the bed tremble under him due to her "stifled" laughter. So he hadn't been the only victim, after all.
"Ginny," Harry said in a deathly quiet tone, clearly attempting to conceal his infamous temper. Teddy was too curious to know what she had done.
"Yes, dear?" Ginny replied teasingly, still tucked behind Teddy. Though Teddy thought she had guts to reply with such an answer.
"D – dear?" Harry spluttered out. Something was clearly nagging his mind, that was for sure. Both Ginny, who grinned widely as she peeked at Harry from behind her "godson's head" and Teddy, who was shocked to see his godfather apparently speechless, watched as Harry opened his mouth in an attempt to respond, then abruptly closed it, looking akin to a fish as he did.
It seems Ginny was his Achilles' heel.
"Y – you," he said finally, still searching for the right words. In the end, he settled with "I can't believe you."
Now Teddy was really curious.
"What?" Ginny responded, her voice quivering with laughter, "What have I done?"
Teddy was shocked to see a red hue form on his godfather's face. As if tremendously humiliated, Harry placed his palm over his face before he abruptly dropped it and snapped, "Y – you told them you were my wife?"
And that was the end for Ginny. She buried her face in the shoulder of the gaping, but amused, Teddy, now laughing whole-heartedly. She didn't even having enough dignity to stifle it.
And the embarrassment faded from Harry, who was now looking irritated.
"It's not funny, Ginny!"
Lifting her head to enjoy his expression, she said, "What's wrong with that?"
Shaking his head, looking somewhat outraged by her comment, he bellowed.
"You're not my wife!"
She simply snorted.
"I'm your virtual wife."
"You do realize that the entire Wizarding World's going to hear about this, don't you? And I told Robards I didn't have one, too."
"You lied, Harry?" Ginny gasped in mock horror, and Teddy couldn't stifle back a snigger. His godfather frowned in disapproval.
"Why did you say that?" Teddy interjected, craning his neck to peer at Ginny curiously, "I mean, she's not really your wife, is she?"
Ginny snickered while Harry replied in a grudging tone. "No, she's not. She only said that so I could get a day off, one that I didn't even need."
So that's what she had done. Teddy admired her bravery.
"Oh, hush," Ginny said in a monotone voice, unfazed by his disapproval. Wrapping her arms around her ally's shoulders, she laid her chin on Teddy's head as she responded, "You're over-worked, and you do need a day-off, in fact, you need two days off," Harry gaped at her in return. He really did care about his job, "one from your job, and one from this prison!"
She finished by gesturing dramatically towards the room. Then, she nudged Teddy and said, "Now, get dressed, you."
"Is that why you told me to get dressed?" Teddy turned his neck to face her.
"Yes," she said austerely, "Now off you go. Muggle clothes."
And Teddy immediately obeyed her command after casting a hasty glance at his still-fuming godfather. He seriously wondered if having too many brothers had strengthened Ginny's confidence. He gratefully left the room as Ginny turned towards Harry with a mock-motherly frown.
"And you."
Harry scowled at her, yet his face had significantly softened since he had first burst in, probably due to a grudging acceptance.
"You do realize I live in this "prison", don't you?
"You've arrested yourself?" Ginny tsked. Despite himself, Harry bit back a smile, "My cold heart does care you know, especially since its cold outside."
"I know it's cold outside," Harry said dryly, "I went outside before I went to work, Ginny."
"I feel like you care more about your job than you care about me, dear," she said sadly as Teddy returned back to the room, fully dressed, "And the only way to break my sorry heart even further is by not getting dressed. Now."
Harry shook his head and sighed as he finally gave in. Throwing an exasperated glance at Teddy, who shrugged helplessly in return. He left his so-called "wife for the day" to go get dressed, being the obedient "husband".
Although, it still caused him to blush every-time that particular subject pounced onto him. He wondered if he would ever possess the strength to spring it on her.
"I still can't believe you brought me here," Harry grumbled as they settled at a circular table. She had spent virtually an hour searching for a suitable Muggle restaurant for the three of them. In the end, she had circled back to the first restaurant that had caught her eye. Harry and Teddy had wisely bit back retorts.
"You're still on about this?" Ginny said outrageously, lifting up a flaming eyebrow from above her menu, "Honestly, and you deny any Hermione influence?"
"If you spend as much time as I do with her, trust me, you'd get influenced, too."
Teddy frowned thoughtfully at his menu as Ginny's eyebrow reached to the bangs of her braid, "This food's horrid. I mean, who eats frog legs, anyway?"
Ginny gaped, looking genuinely shocked as she peered above Teddy's hat (in an effort to conceal his uncontrollable hair) to confirm his exclamation. Indeed, it innocently sat there with the two peering at it with expressions of disgust. They both turned towards Harry in confirmation, yet he merely appeared amused.
"Muggles eat it, haven't you heard?"
They both shook their heads in response. Still expressing genuine disgust, Ginny attempted to reassure Teddy with "Well, I s'pose mad-men will enjoy it," and Harry tried hard to stifle his snicker, "Try looking at something else."
"Erm," Teddy said, looking worried as he peered around the restaurant in fear of "mad-men" and wondered why Ginny would sentence him to such torture, "Okay, I guess."
And the three of them turned back towards their individual menus. A moment later, Ginny suddenly exclaimed in joy, "They've got Shepherd's Pie!"
"Well, it is written on the menu," Harry said in an obvious manner while still frowning at his menu. Ginny threw him an irritated look, apparently ungrateful at his lack of mutual enthusiasm. Teddy, on the other hand, was curious to know what it was. After all, he had rarely visited the Muggle world.
"What's Shepherd's Pie?"
Ginny gaped at him in disbelief, but she looked mildly grateful for having the chance to gloat about it herself.
"It's only one of the best Muggle dishes in the world," she said, gesturing wildly, causing Harry to snort. In his opinion, it really wasn't something to boast about. "It is," she said convincingly. She threw a glare at Harry again before turning back towards her only possible ally and began to describe it.
"It's almost like wanting an entire stock of Firewhiskey!" Ginny finished with a loud exclaim, apparently forgetting that she was talking to a four-year old child, who had little, to no knowledge, about the particular substance.
"Ex – Excuse me?" A new voice interjected. The three of them were startled to see a waiter standing with a notepad, ready to jot down their orders. She looked fearful as she stared at Ginny with a horrified look. It was clear that she had only caught the last words, "What did you say?"
"Erm," Ginny said uncertainly, peering at the gaping waiter confusedly, "Firewhiskey?"
The waiter dropped her notepad in fear, slapped both of her hands onto her mouth, and gasped. Ginny knew that she had unintentionally offended the poor girl, but she didn't see anything wrong with Firewhiskey.
"So you're one of those mad-men that light their whiskeys on fire, then?" the waiter said in a quiet, accusing tone. Both Harry and Ginny shook their heads to no avail, "Have you no shame, in front of a child no less!" she finished by throwing a pitiful glance at Teddy, who peered back at her stupidly.
But Harry interjected, attempting to smooth out the wrinkles of the situation by expanding on Ginny's idea. "Listen, I'm really sorry, but my wife here - well, she's feeling a bit tired today. And she tends to talk nonsense when she does, too. Don't mind her." Harry said convincingly, tactfully ignoring Ginny's appalled look.
Even if she was his wife, she would consider it as a duty for him to defend her honor, regardless of her faulty integrity. As if reading her mind, Harry threw a glare at her that clearly said "you started it" and she wisely bit back a retort.
But Teddy, apparently, had other ideas.
"Mad-men? Aren't they the ones you said eat frog-legs, Ginny?"
There was a loud sputter from the waiter, who looked completely offended by that comment. "I'll have you know, dear, that I, in particular, happen to be a frog leg consumer," she scolded while Harry and Ginny watched helplessly, "And I am not a mad-man!"
"But Ginny said –"
"Oh, did she now?" she threw a death glare at the girl who she assumed wasn't the boy's mother due to her young look. She blindly concluded that the girl was Ginny, now confident that she was, indeed, a mad-man.
Ginny gaped and desperately looked to Harry for help. He quickly leaned forward to hiss at her personally. "Ginny! Muggles don't serve Firewhiskey."
"Oh!" Ginny said, feeling entirely stupid due to her ignorance towards the Muggle world. Honestly, when would she learn? She quickly turned back to correct her error. "I'm sorry, I didn't think you'd understand –"
But the waiter had interrupted, again. "Madam, I assure you, that I speak fluent English despite my foreign background."
As if Ginny could ever infer that she was, indeed, foreign.
"Look," Ginny snapped as she gradually lost her patience with the waiter, "I'm sorry for not being able to explain myself, but can we just order, so we "mad-men" can get out of your sight?"
The waiter threw a final glare at Ginny before leaning down to pick up her notepad in grudging acceptance. Her nose had stayed pointing at the ceiling throughout the entire time she was jotting down their orders. She had even, to Ginny's amusement, poked a hole in her notepad as stomped away.
The three remained stoic in their silence, even Teddy was appalled by such behavior - from an adult, no less!
But the silent thread broke as soon as the lunch had laid down for them (with a glare to go along with it) by Harry, who had ducked his head under the table. The other two could easily feel the table shaking.
"It's not – " Ginny cried while holding back an exaggerated chuckle, "It's not funny, Harry!" In a pathetic attempt to shut him up, she swiped a finger in her mashed potato, waggled her eyebrows at the horrified, but genuinely grinning, Teddy, and stuck the finger into Harry's ear.
Disgusted, Harry cried out. "What the hell, Ginny!"
As Teddy and Ginny guffawed at him, Harry attempted to scowl while still biting back a laugh. He grabbed a stray napkin and attempted to clean out his ear in what he thought was "the tedious way" when it could have been done with a simple flick of his wand.
"We're mad-men, Harry," Ginny formed her hand into a cat-like gesture and pretended to claw at Teddy. He laughed and attempted to wave it away, "We've got to act like it."
"No," Harry smirked, recalling the previous conversation, "You do. I'm not one lighting my whiskey on fire, remember?"
Ginny rolled her eyes and pouted at him. "Neither am I. I'm one to light my Firewhiskey on fire." She finished with a tsk of disapproval. Harry chuckled.
"But you said mad-men eat frog legs," interjected Teddy, still confused about which side to choose.
"Yes, I did," said Ginny confidently, wondering what Teddy was implying.
"But that lady said she eats frog legs," Teddy frowned at Ginny. She sputtered into her drink and spilled it on her trousers, "Doesn't that make her a mad-man?"
"Well, she was a bit mad, don't you think?" she asked and laughed as Teddy nodded seriously and said, "I'll never eat frog legs, then."
And the three of them continued to laugh as they finished their lunch. They patiently waited for the bill to rudely be slammed on the table, not that they cared though. But an argument quickly formed between the two adults as each insisted on paying the bill.
"Harry," Ginny said through gritted teeth as she attempted to snatch the bill from under the "noble" Harry Potter's thieving hands, "I brought you both here, so I'm going to pay!"
"You're right, Ginny," sighed Harry, causing Ginny and Teddy to peer at him in disbelief. Did he honestly give in? "You did bring us here."
Harry deliberately allowed a dramatic pause. Ginny almost believed he had gave in, but she was still suspicious of his intentions.
"So give it to me."
Ginny attempted to reach her hands out to snatch the bill, but something held her hands in place. For a moment, she was confused as turned her questioning eyes towards a chuckling Teddy and asked, "What's going on?"
Teddy looked outraged as he waved his hands in front of him in defensive pose. "Don't look at me. I haven't done anything. Honest."
And then it dawned on her. Ginny turned her glower towards Harry, who was laughing whole-heartedly as he handed the now-paid bill to the glaring waiter and proceeded to wrap his knitted green scarf around his neck, standing up as he did.
Ginny peered up at him through murderous eyes and said in a biting tone.
"Free my hands."
"I was going to," he said with his eyes twinkling mischievously, "But then I feared for my personal protection."
"You should. I told you I was a mad-man," Ginny played on, attempting to free her hands from invisible chains by forcing them out.
Teddy, whose eyes were tearing with amusement, stood up to accompany his godfather as the latter continued to torment Ginny. But he tripped on his chair and fell, his hat flying off.
"Teddy!" Harry and Ginny exclaimed in unison. But as Harry (with Ginny still being stuck) hurried over to tend to his godson, who attempted to wave him away with "I'm fine", a waiter had halted in mid step (behind Teddy) on his way to serve the other customer's beverages and simply stood, staring at the blue-haired Teddy.
Harry, who had finished tending to his godson, noticed the man's gawking stare and quickly grabbed Teddy's hat. "Erm, we should go."
In a hasty effort to flee, Harry fit his godson's hat on the child's head, picked him up, and subtly waved his hand towards Ginny in an attempt to free her bonds.
"Now!" Harry hissed at the oblivious Ginny, who had the decency to gawk back at the waiter. She snapped awake before hurrying after the other two, likewise tripping over her chair as she left.
The three of them breathed sighs of relief as they reached a safe distance away.
"Phew, that was a close one," Ginny sighed in relief and swiped at her the sweat off her brow, despite the cold weather. She tactfully ignored the pointed looks from Harry and Teddy, who was still tucked in his godfather's arms.
"Do you reckon I should've obliviated them?" Harry asked worriedly, knowing how mad Muggles went at the slightest hint of abnormalities.
"Naw," Ginny reassured with a loud yawn and wrapped her scarf around tighter. "Happens," she yawned again, "all the time. Don't you give a hoot about it."
She finished by causing Teddy to elicit a yawn too, and he buried his head near his godfather's neck as he asked, "Now what?"
"Well, Mum said to be home by dinner – and we're definitely not going back to the house," Ginny added, emphasizing the word "house", which caused Harry and Teddy to groan at the implication, "so, let's go explore!" she exclaimed, grinning widely at the idea of an adventure.
And indeed, they found themselves actually enjoying the hunt as they searched for a suitable shop.
They each agreed that they would each take turns in choosing a shop based on their individual liking. But when it was time for Ginny to choose hers, Harry and Teddy had been startled to discover that she had brought them towards a small flower shop, and it seemed to lighten her already-enthusiastic aura. But Harry and Teddy had spent the whole time glancing at each other confusedly.
They had never known that Ginny would ever be attracted to such a girlish thing. Though it seemed to be the only girlish thing that she liked. And both Harry and Teddy had never known.
"My brothers always used to bring me a flower or two on their way back from Hogwarts," she explained, aware of the other twos' befuddlement as she continued to frown towards a particular vase of bristols, "Bill and Charlie mainly, but then I got tired of Fred and George's constant teasing that my bedroom looked something akin to a jungle," she chuckled nostalgically as she said this, "so I stopped asking."
Harry, on the other hand, frowned at her explanation, "You never told me you liked flowers."
Ginny laughed at his expression and said, "It's no big deal, honestly. I mean, it's just a childish desire."
"And yet you're here," Harry accused quietly, disappointed that Ginny had never told him about something as simple as flowers. He didn't know why he found this particular piece of information important, but he did anyway, and she blushed under his intense gaze.
"I told you it doesn't matter," Ginny said in a somewhat forceful tone that Harry certainly hadn't missed. She huffed and exclaimed "honestly" before stomping down the rows in apparent embarrassment. As she left him standing, his frown deepened as he pondered about his apparent ignorance towards her.
"Hey, Harry?" Harry startled as he noticed a light tug on the sleeve of his coat. He peered down through his glasses at his godson, who looked like he was fighting back a smile from beneath his hat.
"Something wrong, Teddy?"
Teddy shook his head in response, bit his lip, and said with a quivering voice, "Nothing, only, you might want to see this."
Confused, yet curious, Harry followed his godson through rows and rows of flowers until they arrived towards an awe-striking array of flowers, ones that Harry was certain he had seen before. In the center of the flock, the flowers presented him with an answer. And he blushed an intense shade of red, nearly rivaling the particular hue of the implied subject's hair.
"I know I've got no room to talk," and Harry finally noticed that even his godson was embarrassed. Both his features and (Harry knew without sight) his hair were flaming red as he fidgeted on his feet, "But when you asked me when I thought was the right time to ask her and I said "I don't know" – well, I realized I do now."
And Harry craned his neck to peer at the now-determined face of his godson, who victoriously fought his embarrassment and confidently met his godfather's eyes. "I think you should do it today – I mean, she deserves it, doesn't she? She really made this the best day. At least, I thought so, anyway,' he asked, ducking his head, as if afraid of his godfather's response, "A – and – well, she does make you happy." He mumbled the last part, but Harry didn't even need to lean down to hear him. He merely stayed frozen in his place.
Teddy bit his lip in fear that he had intruded on something far too personal. But Harry didn't help the situation by staring at nothing in particular. Teddy grew edgy, to the point where he couldn't stop himself from crying, "I'm sorry!"
And that succeeded in snapping his godfather out of his deep trance.
Harry felt an overwhelming amount of fondness towards the boy who he thought was akin to a son, a brother, a best friend, all wrapped into one to form this wonderful boy standing before him. And he was so deeply touched by the thoughtfulness of the boy as he knelt down to meet his godson's averted gaze.
"I did ask you for a reason," Harry said slowly, wanting Teddy to understand that he had been one of the exceptional ones that had succeeded in tugging his heartstrings, and that he had been the first to achieve it with minimum effort, "You know that, don't you?"
"Well – I – yes, but – that's your decision, isn't it?" Teddy asked hesitantly. He slightly relaxed as his godfather smiled at the boy's sensitivity.
"But I asked you, didn't I?" Harry asked while studying his godson's reaction expectedly.
"Yes . . .?" Teddy confirmed slowly, wondering what his godfather was implying. He knew he was implying something. Narrowing his eyes, Teddy tilted his head to the side, and in genuine curiosity, asked, "Why?"
Harry's smile fused into a grin, significantly brightening his green eyes. "You're family, Ted. I asked you because marriage is about family. It's not just about a husband and wife. I asked you and the Weasleys because you're all family to me, and I supposed it felt right." Harry finished with a bashful smile and a half-shrug as Teddy looked on in shock.
Of course he knew that he was supposed to think of the Weasleys, his Gran, and Harry as his family, but throughout his entire life he had always felt his part of the family missing and it saddened him greatly. But hearing someone praise him as family was so overwhelming that he threw his arms around his godfather's neck in gratitude.
"Thanks, Harry," Teddy whispered softly into his godfather's ear. He could feel Harry tightening his arms before slowly pulling away to meet an identical shade of green from his godson's eyes.
"I think she deserves it, too, don't you think?" Harry whispered quietly with his eyes twinkling merrily. They both knew what that meant as they nodded, grinned, and proceeded to find the bride-to-be. But of course, everything had to be implied.
They both agreed to appear indifferent as they found her, apparently flustered. "Where have you two been? I've been searching all over the place for you."
"Sorry, Gin, but Teddy got lost," Harry said in a monotone voice that Ginny picked up easily. He certainly didn't look concerned or even had the decency to sound like he was. She appeared even more confused as she studied their averted gazes. Even Teddy looked like he was struggling back a smile. "You know how he is."
Playing it along much better than they did, Ginny composed herself, shook her head exasperatedly at Teddy and sighed.
"Teddy."
"I can't help it, Ginny."
They really needed to learn how to play this game right.
"Well, I've got everything I needed. Shall we call it a day and head back home, then?"
Both Harry and Teddy nodded. The three of them bid the owner of the shop farewell and left. As they walked the trail between the shops towards the exit of the town, Ginny felt the need to quench her curiosity.
And her irritation caused her to take the concise and straightforward route.
"What are you two hiding?" Ginny demanded from her place between the boys, frustrated by the occasional "subtle" glances that they seemed to throw at each other, thinking she hadn't noticed.
Her temper grew fiercer as Harry smirked and adjusted his glasses. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye, saying in a somewhat dubious tone. "We're not hiding anything, Ginny."
But Ginny simply snorted, her final patience effacing as she snapped, "Yeah, and I'm a fan of the Chudley Cannons," Harry and Teddy merely grinned, "Don't think I haven't noticed the lack of concern in your voice when you said Teddy was lost –"
"But I always get lost –"
"Or the occasional glances you two keep throwing at each other, thinking I hadn't noticed," Ginny said a biting tone, glowering from one to the other, "So, go on, take your time. I can wait all day."
She stopped at the end of the trail with her arms crossed and seemed determined to stay there until one of them chose to explain. Despite himself, Harry wondered amusedly what her mother would say if he chose not to explain anything to her daughter. But it seemed the plan had flown fluently after all.
He glanced down at the grinning Teddy, who nodded. Harry smiled at him in return before gently grabbing Ginny's arm and said, "Alright, Gin, you win."
She looked smug for a moment then slighty skeptical. It seemed a bit too easy. She snatched her arm from beneath his grip and frowned, "This better not be some idea of a joke, Harry Potter."
"It's not. I'm being honest, I promise."
He beckoned the frozen Teddy over, who was watching the exchange like an interesting show, and proceeded to elaborate by steering her towards a tranquil area where they could easily spot the sun setting from above a lake. "We got wrapped in a conversation, that's all."
Ginny raised one eyebrow at the amused Teddy and then to the thoughtful Harry, who had his eyes fixed on the lake. "And? Is it something I should know about or is it private?"
"A little of both, actually," Ginny frowned as she heard him chuckle. Not certain she liked where the direction of the conversation was going, she easily distracted herself with the goldish-green of the "eyes as green as a fresh pickled toad." That particular thought caused her to burn red and abruptly snap out of her daze. She glared at Teddy as he attempted to stifle a snicker.
"I'm either listening or I'm not, then," she mumbled, hating the way he made her feel like a bloody four year old utterly bouncing off the walls with her obsessive infatuation with her hero again.
"Well, Teddy and I," Harry finally tore his eyes away from the sun set to nod towards Teddy, who waved merrily at Ginny, which caused her to elicit a fond smile, "thought we ought to thank you."
"Thank me?" Ginny chuckled, scoffing at the mere thought of thanking for something as simple as a day outdoors, "It was nothing, really. Honestly, it's not like I was doing it for a proposal or something." Ginny shook her head amusedly, but when she bothered to register her surroundings, she had never felt so confused.
Teddy was leaning against a tree, literally trembling from head to toe with laughter. Harry had his mouth wide open, a grin slowly twitching its way up his lips. Ginny concluded that she had said something she shouldn't have said.
And to think her parents used to always chide for saying the wrong things at the wrong time.
"What!" Ginny exclaimed, especially eyeing Teddy's hysterical laughter, "And why –" she said, chuckling helplessly, "Why are you laughing?"
She looked to Harry for help, but he stood facing away from her with both of his hands clutching his forehead while incessantly muttering, "I was trying to be smooth, I was trying to be smooth."
"Smooth?" Ginny interjected. She merely knew that she had unintentionally been the cause of a failed plan, "What are on about?"
"Just do it, Harry!" Teddy encouraged through his laughter, and Harry abandoned all embarrassment and planning and did, in fact, do it.
"Oh, blast it!" Harry stretched out his palms towards Ginny, who now could see a small green box in the center of his cupped hands, "Ginny, will you marry me?"
And everything starting from the blushing, the serious atmosphere, and the suspicious absence to the thought of thanking and the laughter towards her coincidental comparison all dawned on her on that particular moment, and she couldn't stifle the shout of laughter that escaped from her as she clutched Harry's still-outstretched arms and leaned her head onto his chest in an attempt to steady herself as three of them collapsed in fits of laughter.
And they settled down a bit, Teddy and Harry eagerly awaited Ginny's answer, but they both knew that Ginny was an expert at stalling. They directly asked her instead, but to no avail did she reply, "I thought I already was your wife?" she asked, difficultly concealing her excitement.
Harry grinned at her in return. He furtively stole one of her hands between one of his and used the other to place the box in her hands, "You're my virtual wife, remember?"
Her eyes blazed as they peered at him through a smirk, significantly lighting up her features and giving her the strength of the sun. She then proceeded to inspect the ring. Both males watched as the female eyed every detail starting from the emerald and ending to the rubies. They couldn't decipher her expression for it remained stoically indifferent. As if sensing their impatience, she shut the box, grabbed Harry's hand, placed the ring back into his hand, and took a step back.
"On your knees, Potter," and with a quivering voice, Ginny gestured towards the ground, struggling to conceal her excitement. Harry knew she would do something like that. Rolling his eyes and sending a glare at Teddy, who likewise gestured towards the ground, he obediently did as they told and repeated the question, "Will you marry me again, Ginny?"
And he had raised himself just in time to steady them both as they sealed their lips together with a passionate embrace with Teddy making disgusted noises in the far distant background. This startled them both as they detangled quickly, looking, to Teddy's amusement, extremely embarrassed. He thought served them right for making him watch with his own share of embarrassment.
"I'll marry you only once, though," said Ginny, slightly breathless as she remembered to answer the question, "I think twice is a bit too much, don't you?" she finally placed her ring into her finger and peered back to examine it as Harry chuckled and tucked a stray flower into her braid.
"I can't stand you two," Teddy interjected as he caught the attention of the two lovebirds. He missed Harry's smirk and Ginny's sudden gleam in her eye as he shook his head in apparent disappointment. But he elicited a cry as he caught himself spinning in Ginny's arms.
"Ginny!" Teddy cried helplessly, appalled at her sudden hysterical moment.
"I'm getting married, Teddy!" she cried in merriment. It seemed she hadn't been so unappreciative after all.
"Okay, Ginny, but can you please let me down?"
But Ginny did something worse than that, in Teddy's opinion at least.
Concluding, for humor purposes, that maybe Teddy's grouchiness was due to his envy of affection. Ginny tried to sneak several small kisses, but only one or two made it. He had attempted to wave her away, giggling as he did as Harry simply looked on in amusement. He made no attempts to stop her.
And by the time they had finished celebrating, Ginny informed them that it was dinner time at the Burrow. It would be a perfect opportunity to pounce in with the news then. The three agreed and reluctantly Apparated away from the lake, leaving the last rays of the sun behind.
As they trudged towards the Burrow, Ginny looked towards Harry, who had his head bowed towards the ground, lost in thought, occasionally adjusting his glasses as he walked.
"You told my parents, didn't you?" Ginny asked, already guessing the answer.
Harry smiled, turning towards her as she adjusted her scarf so that it wrapped around both hers and Teddy's necks. She was still carrying him. Harry merely nodded in response as he allowed her to rule out the second part of his riddle.
"And let me guess, Ron, too, and Hermione."
Harry nodded once more.
"And Ron gave you his blessing?"
Harry snorted before replying, "He had too, or else I won't give him mine when it's his turn."
And Ginny chuckled at the respond. She knew of Harry's relationship with Hermione. Like any brother, he would defend her honor until the day of his death. Even after he would still continue, and Ginny knew that Hermione would too.
They entered the Burrow in time for dinner to find it completely abandoned, and they tromped out in the backyard to greet the family there. What they met was indeed a family alright, an abnormally silent and subdued family.
And Harry and Ginny inferred the worst.
"What happened?"
"What happened, what happened?" Ron exclaimed in horror, stomping towards the two as Hermione helplessly attempted to tug on his arm to no avail, "When exactly did you elope before deciding to skip it and be bloody married, already?"
They heard shouts from Ginny's other brothers as they agreed. Ginny pulled Teddy closer to her in an attempt for him to defend her, should any of them decide to go physically violent (not they ever would). But it did comfort her to know they could no harm while she held a child in her arms, and Ginny met the exasperated eyes of Harry before realizing that this was her fault to begin with.
Ginny sighed.
"How did you know?" she asked grimly, making a face at her brother.
"It's written in the bloody Prophet!"
"Ron, I'm sure if you stop yelling and actually bother hearing them out, maybe you might be able to get the full story!"
Trust Hermione to apply logic to any situation, not that Ginny was complaining, though.
"Thanks, Hermione."
"Don't mention it," she said, sending a glare Ron's way.
"Ginevra," and Ginny sighed as she heard the disapproving tone of her mother, "What on earth have you done?"
And Ginny thought it was a bit unfair for them to accuse her only, when her apparent "husband" was standing right next to her.
But then, it was her fault.
Ginny decided to forge the details for now and get the full story out before everyone erupted like volcanoes. She settled with "It was a misconception, Mum."
And everyone sighed in relief. Ginny stuck her tongue out towards the relieved Ron, which caused the Teddy in her arms to giggle quietly. She lightly tickled him too as she noticed (through her peripheral vision) Hermione, her mother, and Fleur (of all people) looking a bit downcast at the lack of news. Ginny nearly smirked as she placed Teddy down due to the insistence of Victorie.
"Honestly, I still can't believe you all give a hoot about the Prophet," Ginny said mockingly, watching the guilty ones blush as she met the gaze of the twinkling green eyes of her husband-to-be, and she gained the courage to say, "But I am getting married!"
And both Harry and Ginny watched as the males choked and the females gasp, while the children didn't even glance their way.
But the mystery was yet to be solved.
"To who?" Charlie sputtered; both him and Bill were frowning as they turned towards their slightly worried father, who seemed a bit thrown off. Harry was not helping by appearing entirely indifferent about the situation.
Ron gaped and turned towards Hermione in confirmation, but she seemed as confused as he was. She shrugged in response to his questioning eyes as the two of them turned to stare pointedly at their silent friend.
"Harry?" Hermione asked hesitantly.
"It better be you, Harry, I'm not having an ape as my brother-in-law," Ron said frowning. He yelped as Hermione stamped on his foot due to his insensitivity, "What? He'll be my only brother-in-law!"
Ginny snickered at her brother's comparison. She doubted that Harry would ever be compared to an ape. Glancing surreptitiously sideways, she noticed that he was grinning, and wondered if he was thinking along the same lines as she was.
But he still wouldn't answer.
"Harry, dear," Molly made her way from down the table towards the both of them and pinned him with an ominous stare, and Ginny wondered amusedly if he wasn't "the Chosen One." Her mother looked fit to force the "yes" out of Harry, "Is it you?"
And Harry couldn't just ignore Molly Weasley's questions, so he obediently answered.
"She threatened me, Mrs Weasley!" Harry cried, but they knew he was joking due to his ever-growing grin on his features, "You don't know what she's done to me." And they all laughed and cheered as he confirmed their suspicions, and Ginny playfully shoved his shoulder as he made himself seem like the victim.
Her brothers, surprisingly, were grudgingly accepting. They knew exactly who Harry was. They reassured him that this was merely the beginning of their sister's mischief, and even Ginny found herself laughing right along with them. She really hadn't noticed how much pain she had inflicted on her family.
Ginny noticed that her mother had tears in her eyes as she enfolded both Harry and Ginny into her arms. She knew that adding Harry to the family greatly touched her mother, who already looked to Harry like a son and he returned the gesture vice-versa. But Ginny could understand that it was a bit overwhelming for it to become official. She knew that her mother could never have asked for a better son-in-law.
And as her mother pecked them both on their cheeks, Ginny noticed her father and brothers expressing their approval, apparently agreeing with Ron that Harry was better than an ape. When they told him this, he simply smiled, shrugged, and continued to shake their hands, laughing right along with them as he did. Yes, they certainly accepted Harry, who was their seventh brother – and son in her father's case – long before it was official.
She watched as Ron placed a hand on Harry's shoulder, and with a glare from Hermione and a glare from Harry, he opened his mouth to say something, but seemed to change his mind, instead resorting to, "You two are going to burn holes in my head if you keep glaring like that," he said, pretending to cringe away, eliciting stifled smiles from them both, he then said seriously, "I gave you my blessing, Harry, but you'd better take care of my sister!"
"And you'd better take care of my sister," Harry emphasized towards Hermione as she leaned in to embrace him in congratulations. She laughed as she heard his statement and threw a pointed look at Ron, who looked apparently speechless. He abruptly drew Hermione into him, wrapping his arms around her shoulders in defense.
"I don't have too, she's a woman."
"So you've finally spotted I'm a girl, then?" she asked with twinkling eyes, peering up at him. He grinned at her in return as Harry laughed.
"Well, I'm not as clever as you," he said smoothly, causing Harry to snort and Hermione to smile fondly. But Harry couldn't stifle his retort, "I think you're both clever, especially since I caught the two of you researching something about decent compliments."
And they both blushed guiltily, causing Harry to smirk victoriously. The three of them continued to argue, celebrate, and according to Ron, feast. Hermione rolled her eyes, apparently deciding to let him slide.
And they all settled down for a family dinner, still enthusiastic about the news, before Ginny, who had conversing along with the amused George, noticed that Harry, who was sitting on her right, had told something to Ron that caused the latter to burn red with laughter and even tilt his chair back in amusement. It did not help that both of her parents, including Hermione, were attempting to stifle their laughter to no avail.
But Ginny, bless her, had tuned out by then. She had remained blissfully oblivious towards the direction of the conversation and the additional input from the now-returned Teddy.
And lucky her, she had opened her mouth just in time to be saved by Ron's broken explanation, "We – you – mad-men – whiskey," and his laughs renewed as Ginny struggled to place the broken strands together. She glared at a chuckling Harry and a snickering Teddy while Hermione exclaimed in a quivering voice, apparently stifling her own laughter. Ginny agreed that she didn't make things any better, "Ron! S – shut up!" And she surrendered herself to her laughter, imitating the prat.
"Ginny, honestly," Arthur reproved, all the while stifling his own amusement, "I've said all along that learning about Muggles would be extraordinarily beneficial, but do children ever listen?" he finished by shaking his head.
Ginny, however, appeared outraged, but a grin was ever present on her countenance, nevertheless, "I didn't know that even the food was different! I reckoned that that was something that all human beings," she emphasized through a gesture, causing the others to elicit renewed laughs, "had in common!"
"Look on the bright side," George said from his place beside her, and Ginny predicted that she wouldn't like his next statement, "At least you don't eat frog legs."
Ginny threw him a failed attempt at a glare as a grin slowly twitched on the corner of her mouth, and the entire backyard was full of laughter and celebration as they forgot all their problems and just became young and blissfully carefree again, just the way Ginny liked it.
And as they returned to the living room, Harry and Ginny found themselves sitting together on a couch, facing the family. They simply sat in content silence as they listened to the others tell stories about utter nonsense, with Ginny occasionally throwing in a word or two. But she was generally distracted by her future godson.
She watched as he gradually grew bored as he lost his playmate to the depravity of sleep, and watched as he attempted to fight it himself. As he passed her on his way to a specific bedroom, rubbing his eyes as he did, Ginny snatched the dozing child into her arms, causing him to startle but quickly relax as he recognized her touch and leaned in, immediately giving in to slumber as she stroked his colored hair.
During this, Ginny could feel the soft gaze watching, merely observing their actions. She turned her head slightly to meet the endearing gaze, smiling as she did. She enjoyed the way the smile reached his eyes, and then she realized that this was what she wanted, just blissful tranquility and loving gazes from all around.
And that was her strength, for being able to accomplish it.
A/N: Edited December 14, 2017.