A/N: Just a reminder, Part Two is leaping ahead to the future, picking up where the prologue left off. As always, thank you for your reviews.

Part Two

Chapter Fifteen

"Ginny? I asked you a question!" Hermione snapped impatiently. Ginny glanced up suddenly. Her thoughts were obviously elsewhere, although she doubted she would be paying attention even if she wasn't distracted.

"Hermione! We've been looking at flower arrangements for three hours! Just pick a bloody centerpiece!" Ginny retorted crossly. Hermione glared, but didn't say anything more. She selected an arrangement a few minutes later and informed the florist. Ginny stood at the window, watching the throngs of people bustling through Diagon Alley. Every time she caught a glimpse of blonde hair out of the corner of her eye, her head whipped to the corresponding direction. She chided herself for feeling disappointed when her gaze did not come to rest upon Draco Malfoy.

"Okay, the flowers are done. Now it's time for the fun part," Hermione said with sparkling eyes. Ginny looked at her friend nervously, wondering if their definitions of "fun" would coincide.

"What's that?"

"Bridesmaid dresses!" Hermione squealed excitedly. Ginny rolled her eyes, but couldn't hide a smile. She loved to pick out formal dresses for special occasions, and even though she felt completely confused inside, she still found herself looking forward to the dress search.

She let Hermione drag her into a bridal boutique, and she tried to at least pretend that she was listening to Hermione's prattle. Before she knew it, Ginny was standing on a platform surrounded by a one hundred eighty degree mirror, waiting for Hermione to select the first dress to model.

"Okay, this is the one Fleur likes," Hermione said with a slight wrinkle of the nose. She waved her wand and Ginny's wardrobe changed. She was suddenly adorned in a knee-length, frilly, pink atrocity.

"Oh…my…god," Ginny whispered. "This…is…"

"Horrendous," Hermione finished in awe.

"Please. Get it off me," Ginny pleaded, looking around to see if anyone in the store was watching. Hermione graciously waved her wand and the pink was replaced with a blue satin A-line dress. Ginny turned around, examining it from several angles.

"I don't know. What do you think?" She asked Hermione, who was studying the dress very carefully.

"I think we'd need to go darker," she said, flicking her wand. The turquoise shade deepened to a sapphire, and Hermione began her observation again.

"I like this better," Ginny agreed, spinning around. Hermione nodded.

"Definitely an improvement. All right! Next!"

Two hours later, Hermione and Ginny had decided on lavender bridesmaid dresses and a deep violet for Ginny's maid of honor dress. Hermione waved her wand one last time with a funny sort of smirk on her face. Ginny looked down, expecting to be back in her muggle jeans and blue t-shirt, but instead, she found herself in a beautiful, ball-gown style wedding dress.

"You're going to be such a beautiful bride, Ginny!" Hermione sighed with a smile. Ginny felt her heart fall slightly as she glanced at herself in the mirror. For the longest time, she had one vision of her wedding day. A gown just like the one she was wearing, and a groom just like the man who had appeared outside the window.

Draco had been aimlessly wandering the streets of Diagon Alley, half-heartedly hoping to bump into the woman who continually found her way into his thoughts. He almost thought he was hallucinating when he first saw her in the bridal store. First of all, she looked positively angelic in the white wedding gown, and secondly, he had convinced himself that they weren't going to see each other ever again. When he blinked several times and she didn't disappear, his heart wrenched painfully. Their eyes locked and fused; shared emotions permeated the atmosphere around them.

"Ginny? Are you all right?" Hermione asked cautiously, noticing her friend's sudden rigidness and pointed stare. Before Ginny could mask her change in disposition, Hermione was glancing in the direction of Ginny's gaze.

As soon as Hermione caught sight of Draco, he quickly dropped Ginny's eyes and left the window. Ginny watched him go, wanting desperately to chase after him. But the look on Hermione's face kept her rooted to the spot.

"Was that Draco Malfoy?" She exclaimed in shock. Ginny swallowed, finding it more difficult than she had expected. She needed to stay calm. Pretend like nothing was wrong. Hermione couldn't suspect anything, because Ginny knew Hermione could figure out everything from the slightest suspicion.

"I think so. He looked very familiar," Ginny replied casually. Hermione watched the window for a little while longer, as though hoping for another look.

"I thought the war was the end of him," Hermione commented, clearly confused by his obvious vitality. Ginny's eyes threatened to water, but she willed against them.

"So did I," she agreed quietly.

"Well," Hermione began, done with the subject entirely. "I think we had a very productive morning. Do you want to get lunch before heading home?" She waved her wand, and Ginny's street clothes replaced the gown.

"Sure," Ginny replied somewhat distractedly. She ran her fingers through her gentle curls and muttered the charm for curing headaches. "I'll wait for you outside, Hermione." Hermione waved Ginny on and wandered over to the cashier. Ginny stepped outside and quickly scanned the streets. Her heart sank when she saw no trace of Draco amongst the throngs of people bustling about.

Suddenly, a hand snatched her arm and dragged her into an alley between the bridal shop and the bakery next door. Ginny yelped as she was pressed against the brick wall by a strong body.

"Sorry for scaring you," Draco apologized immediately. "But I didn't want to risk Granger coming out and seeing us together." Ginny glared at him.

"Why are you abducting me in alleyways on Diagon Alley? Did we not finish our conversation already?"

"Stop pretending like you weren't happy to see me just now. I know you, Ginevra," Draco whispered with a nearly imperceptible smile. Ginny sighed and glanced anxiously at the sidewalk for Hermione.

"Can you get to the point? We don't have much time," Ginny reiterated.

"I leave for Paris in the morning. Is there nothing I can say to change your mind?" Draco demanded bluntly. Ginny stared at him, her mind suddenly blank. She wanted to think through things logically. She wanted to weigh her options and decide in favor of the best one. But her brain refused to process anything of substance. Draco studied her for several long moments before sighing and stepping back from her.

"I suppose I'll take your silence as a no," he said in a defeated tone. "I love you, Ginny Weasley. But if it is your wish, I'll go back where I came from and never speak to you again." Ginny's eyes swam with tears, and she searched for the words she longed to say. But she came up empty handed, and Draco gave one solemn nod before vanishing into thin air.

"Ginny?" Hermione's voice interrupted the silence. Ginny took a deep breath, brushed a tear from her cheek and emerged from the alley with a bright smile on her face.

"There you are!" She chirped in a cheerful tone that sounded false to her own ears. Hermione raised an eyebrow.

"Why were you lurking in a dark alleyway?"

"Oh…I thought I saw a galleon on the ground. But it was just a foil candy wrapper. So, are you hungry? I'm starving!" Ginny changed the subject rapidly and dragged Hermione towards a café before her friend could ask any more questions.

--

Unbelievable, Ginny thought as she glanced up from Fred's tombstone. She didn't need him to turn around to know that it was Draco who was standing in front of Remus and Tonks' graves. He had been there when she arrived, and she was hoping that he'd leave so she could go pay her own respects.

Ginny watched as Draco waved his wand gracefully. A rose bush sprouted from the grass between their gravestones, and the vines curled up and around the markers. Beautiful pink roses blossomed here and there, with an occasional white rose thrown into the mix. Ginny didn't realize she was smiling at first. It wasn't until Draco had turned around and made eye contact that she noticed she had indeed been smiling. But she stopped as soon as he saw her.

"Following me?" He asked casually, walking over to her. Ginny shook her head wordlessly. Draco glanced down at the grave she was standing over. His expression softened and he cleared his throat awkwardly.

"I'm still very sorry about your brother, Ginny," he said quietly. Ginny nodded and avoided his eyes.

"What are we going to do about this, Draco?" She asked.

"About what?"

"About us."

"I didn't realize there was an 'us,'" Draco replied with a smirk. Ginny gave him a withering look.

"Could you please at least pretend to be serious for two minutes?"

"I just don't know what there is to talk about, Ginny. Every time we see each other, you tell me that you don't want me anymore and that you're going to marry Potter. Pretty sure I can figure out what that translates to."

"Draco, it's not like that," Ginny protested. Draco raised an eyebrow.

"Really? Then what am I missing?"

"I'm just confused, Draco. I thought you were dead for so long and then all of a sudden you show up. While you were gone, I spent a lot of time trying to live my life without you. It wasn't easy at all, but I had to do it. Somewhere along the line, I let myself fall in love with Harry again." Draco recoiled. His eyes were a mixture of bitterness and desperation. "I'm not even sure who you are anymore. Do you know who I am? Maybe we're different people. Maybe we don't fit anymore."

"Ginny, we both know that's rubbish. We were going all the way." Ginny sighed and shook her head sadly.

"I'm sorry, Draco. Things have changed." Draco nodded in defeat.

"Well, like I said this afternoon, I'm leaving for Paris tomorrow. If you change your mind, come find me in London. If not…I'm finished," Draco said quietly. Ginny's heart was breaking all over again as she watched him walk away. Just like before, she wanted to chase after him and take everything back. But she was babysitting Teddy, and she was already running late.

Ginny arrived at Andromeda Tonks' home a few moments later. She was barely in the door before she was almost barreled over by a very energetic five year old.

"Aunt Ginny!" Ted screeched, wrapping his little arms around her knees. Ginny laughed and ruffled his brown hair.

"Hey, Teddy! How are you?"

"Fine!" Ted replied with a toothy smile.

"Ready to go to the park?" Ginny asked, squatting down to his eye level. Ted nodded eagerly. In his excitement, his hair rapidly changed color from brown to purple. Ginny giggled and shook her head.

"You are definitely a Tonks," she said, kissing his cheek. Andromeda appeared in the hallway and smiled at Ginny.

"How are you, Ginny?"

"Very well. How are you?"

"Getting by. How's Harry doing?"

"He's all right. He's Ron's best man, so they've been spending a lot of time together doing male bonding activities or something."

"Boys will be boys, Ginny. Remember that," Andromeda advised. Ginny smiled and rolled her eyes.

"Don't I know it?"

"Well, you two have fun."

"Thanks, Grandma. We'll be home for dinner," Ginny said, taking Teddy by the hand. Ted was the sweetest little boy in the world. His quiet and polite habits almost certainly came from Remus. It made Ginny a little sad to look into the child's eyes. He had so much of Remus in him, and she wished with all her heart that the boy could have known his father.

--

"Ginny?" Harry called from the couch. Ginny finished pouring both of them a glass of wine and returned to the sitting room.

"What?"

"I have a question," Harry said slowly. Ginny handed him his glass.

"Am I in trouble?" She asked carefully. Harry smiled.

"No," he replied. Then added, "Well…not yet."

"Oh, that makes me feel better."

"Just wait. It's really not that bad," Harry said soothingly. "I just wanted to know if you were still a virgin when we started dating." Ginny froze. Draco had been her one, her only. Harry would undoubtedly want to know who she slept with if she admitted it. Either way she was going to have to lie.

"I…uh…no," she finally answered. And that was the end of honesty. Harry raised his eyebrows.

"Who was the lucky guy?" He asked, just as she had expected him to. Fortunately, she knew what she was going to say.

"Colin," she replied quietly. Harry's eyes widened.

"Colin? Colin Creevy?"

"We were best friends, Harry. We were hanging out one night and things just went a little too far. You can understand that, can't you?" Ginny asked, almost pleading. Harry nodded vigorously and took a sip of wine.

"Of course I can. I've slept with a bunch of girls under those circumstances."

"A bunch?" Ginny inquired with disgust. Harry saw her facial expression and immediately began searching for a way out.

"Not a bunch," he said hastily. "Don't look at me like that, Ginny. I didn't mean it like it sounded. I haven't slept with that many girls."

"Ok, I don't want to talk about it anymore, Harry. Let's just work on our party plans, because our reservations need to be in by tomorrow," Ginny said, rubbing her temples. The two of them started working on bachelor and bachelorette party plans in awkward silence.

Ginny eyed Harry uneasily from across the room. Neither of them was giving very much away about their plans, but Ginny had seen a stripper ad when she served Harry his wine. She couldn't help being a little leery of the idea of Harry at a party with unlimited alcohol and a professional stripper. Although it had never been a big deal, Ginny had seen him look at other women when they were together. She had brushed it off most of the time, reassuring herself that he was still a guy, even if he was her fiancé.

"This party is going to be a ruddy good time," Harry commented proudly as he finished his guest list. "I can't wait for Friday." Ginny smiled weakly in agreement and continued working on her itinerary.

"I know you don't want to reveal too much, but can you tell me where yours is going to be so I don't accidentally take Hermione to the same place?" Ginny asked as she flipped through catering hall ads. Harry chuckled.

"I don't think you'll be bringing Hermione here. My party is going to be hosted by the hottest strip club in London," Harry replied boastfully. Ginny's stomach turned unpleasantly.

"Oh," she said softly. "Do you really think that's a good idea?"

"What are you talking about? Of course it's a good idea!" Harry exclaimed. "It's a classic bachelor party! Strippers and booze. What could be better?" Ginny tried not to show her disapproval. She didn't want to get into an argument with Harry. If they argued, then she would be forced to accept what Draco had stated so plainly. She wasn't happy. Keeping her lips pressed firmly together, Ginny returned to her work.

"Where are you taking Hermione?" Harry asked, stretching out across Ginny's couch. She watched him for a moment, noticing every little detail of his persona. His feet were on the coffee table; she'd asked him not to do that several times before. His shirt was untucked and wrinkled. He had an air of arrogance about him that became apparent in very subtle ways.

"Ginny?" Harry waved his hand in her line of vision. "What's wrong with you?"

"Sorry, I was just thinking about the party," Ginny mumbled.

"Did you decide where to take her?" Harry asked again. Ginny only paused for a moment before she replied.

"Paris."