"How are ya, Sis?" Ron asked, hugging Ginny tightly after stepping from the fireplace. He had dreaded this moment ever since he picked up the items from the ground that day, but owed it to her to give them back, knowing how much they'd mean to her. He would want her to do it for him if anything ever happened to Tess or the kids.

"I'm okay," she answered honestly with a small nod. "As well as can be expected." It was easier to answer that way than admit she cried herself to sleep every night.

Ron grimaced, hating having to do this, wishing like hell Neville was still there. "Well, I told you I had a couple things of Nev...of his" – He cleared his throat. "Maybe I should wait," he said quietly, knowing he couldn't.

"No," Ginny said, her hand on his arm. "Please, Ron. It's okay." She sat down on the couch and he joined her.

Ron pulled the first item from his cloak. "I found this on the ground," he said quietly, handing her Neville's wand. "You know…that day." He almost didn't want to watch her reaction.

Ginny took it carefully, as if it were made from the finest crystal, easily shattered with just a touch. Biting her lip, hoping to hold off the tears, she forced a smile. "Thank you," she said barely audible. She'd wondered what had become of it, assuming it was lost. Now that she could hold it again, it was as if she was briefly connecting with Neville once more.

"There's...uh...one other thing," Ron continued, eyes apologetic, knowing she wouldn't be expecting this one. She had to know though.

"What?"

He leaned back to slide his hand into his pants pocket and pulled it out to reveal a ring lying in his palm.

Ginny gasped, a hand flying to her mouth for just a moment. "Is that mine?" she whispered, eyes quickly filling with tears. She stared at the sparkling ruby set on a platinum band, not wanting to touch it, not wanting to admit what she was secretly thinking. "That can't be mine, Ron." Certainly, it had just been in the vicinity, dropped by someone other than Neville. It couldn't be…

"It was an engagement ring," Ron told her, still holding out his hand, willing her to take it. "He was going to ask you...during the camping trip...I was the only one who knew about it." Neville told him two months ago when he bought the ring that he was going to propose.

Ginny swallowed. "A ruby?" she asked curiously, mouth suddenly dry.

"He always called you his fire," Ron explained with a small smile. "Ruby signifies fire, he told me. And he figured you two hadn't done anything else the traditional way..."

Ginny half laughed, gently taking the ring from Ron's palm, holding it between her thumb and index finger, admiring how the facets caught the light, a glittering reminder of what her future should have held. A couple tears spilled from her eyes as she wiped them away with her other hand. They could have been engaged right now if only…

"I'm sorry, Gin," Ron said, shaking his head. "But I just didn't want to keep waiting to give you these. I knew you'd want them. He loved you so much." Ron was having a difficult time keeping his own emotions at bay. Where he'd been angry with Neville when he found out about the pregnancy years ago, he'd since realized that Neville and William were the best things that could have happened to his sister, especially now.

"It's okay," she said with a nod, glancing at her brother, knowing she could hold in her breakdown till he was gone. "Really. Thank you so much for giving them to me." Her eyes locked with his this time when she asked, "Would you...put this on my finger? I know it sounds silly but..." Neville was supposed to have placed it there as a symbol of their love for each other. With him gone, she couldn't bear to do it herself. At least not this first time.

"It's not silly," Ron said, taking it from her, gently holding her left hand. "I just wish he was the one doing it." He slid the ring onto her left ring finger, both watching as the spelled band self-adjusted.

She held up her left hand and stared at the ring, amazed by the dark crimson color of the stone. "Thank you," she whispered as she touched it reverently, thinking how right it looked and how wrong everything else was.

Ron sighed. He hated to upset her but wanted her to know what Neville had planned for them and how serious he'd been about them being together and being a family. "I'll go now," he said, relieved this was done. "I'm sure you'd like a little time before Mum and Dad get here."

They stood up and walked to the fireplace, Ginny hugging him quickly. "Love you," she said as he stepped into the fireplace and flooed home, waiting until the green flames died completely before she allowed her tears.

Two hours later, Molly and Arthur flooed over with an arm full of food.

"Mum, we're not starving," Ginny said with a slight roll of her eyes. "You didn't need to do all this." She always told her not to make a fuss, however they brought an armful every time they visited.

"Nonsense," Molly said, quickly leaning over to kiss her daughter's cheek. "It was no trouble." She placed her armful on the kitchen table, facing Ginny, eyes filled with sadness but forcing a brave smile. "It's all I can do, Love. I have to do something. Please let me do this, without an argument."

Arthur placed his armful on the table also and hugged Ginny to him, cheek resting against her head. "We feel so helpless," he added, his heart still broken from his little girl's loss. She'd always be his little girl as far as he was concerned. "As a parent, I know you understand how we feel."

She nodded, thinking of her son. "I do," she said, stepping back, deciding not to give them a hard time about wanting to help her ever again. "Thank you both. Would you like some tea?"

"That would be lovely," Molly called out, half in and half out of the refrigerator, making room for the groceries she and Arthur brought.

"Hi Nana! Hi Papa!" William exclaimed when he walked into the kitchen and saw his grandparents, running to Arthur first who scooped him up in his arms.

"There's my boy," he cooed, rocking from side to side as he held the child. "Have you been good for your mummy?" He couldn't help but dote just a bit more on his first grandson, especially now.

"Yes, Papa," William answered with a nod. "I help her a lot."

Molly walked over and gave his freckled cheek a gentle squeeze. "My little man," she said with a grin. "I've got a special treat for you." She reached into a bag and pulled out package of chocolate covered cream puffs.

William clapped his hands together. "Candy!" he exclaimed, wiggling from Arthur's hold, taking the bag and running from the room, calling out, "Thank you!"

Ginny rolled her eyes and smiled as she reached into the cabinet for cups. "Mum..."

"He's my grandchild and I can spoil him if I want," Molly said emphatically, instantly defending herself. "And anything I can do to put a smile on his face, I'll do happily. Now let's get the rest of this put away and start on dinner."

Ginny couldn't really argue with her as she felt the same way.

Two hours later, while everyone was at the table finishing dinner, William asked, "Did you see Mummy's ring?" It was pretty and sparkly and he liked it.

Arthur and Molly glanced at each other and then at their daughter's hand.

"It's beautiful," Molly told her with a smile, surprised she didn't notice it earlier. "Rubies have always been my favorite." Every morning she woke up wishing all the events of the past month would be a bad dream.

"Is that…was it from…" Arthur began but didn't know how to ask his question. He fought guilt every day, thinking he should have been able to do more to save Neville.

Ginny smiled. "He…Neville…bought it for me," she told them. "He was going to propose when we…when we went camping." She paused to admire it for the thousandth time that day. "Ron found it along with Neville's wand and gave them to me this morning."

Molly's eyes were watering as she listened to her daughter, hearing the sadness in her voice. "Lovely," was all she could squeak out before she covered her mouth with a quivering hand, forcing herself not to cry in front of William.

"Such a good man," Arthur said, eyes misting as well. "I would have been proud to introduce him as my son-in-law, you know."

"I know, Dad," Ginny said. "I know."

William, who had been sitting quietly, reached over and placed his hand on Molly's as it rested on the table. "It's okay to cry, Nana," he told her. "I still cry for Daddy too."

Unable to suppress her all consuming emotion, Molly gripped his small hand, tears spilling from her eyes, but said nothing. The bravery of her grandson left her speechless.

Ginny did her best to ignore the calendar that was seemingly taunting her with the impending full moon. She didn't contact Remus as she didn't want to discuss anything combining her son and werewolves. She knew deep inside that she was only prolonging the inevitable but couldn't bring herself to acknowledge the bite. There was a tiny part of her that wanted to believe nothing would happen, that she could just ignore everything and it would be okay, and unfortunately she listened to that tiny voice, shooing away Remus' owl each time it arrived with the note she knew she didn't want to read.

"Albus, she's ignoring me," Remus told the Headmaster. "I've sent her quite a few owls to try to let her know about this first change but she won't even read my notes." He assumed the first couple that were returned were just accidents, but after the sixth knew she was purposely sending the owl back.

Albus nodded slowly. "Can you blame her?" he asked simply.

Remus sat still and blinked twice before answering. "I guess not." He paused to look over Albus' shoulder at Fawkes, who sat calmly preening her feathers. "What am I to do? If he stays, she will surely get bit. She has no idea how to handle this."

Albus nodded, understanding the predicament Remus was in, knowing exactly why Ginny was ignoring him. "Do what you must," he told him. "I will back you up."

Remus nodded, knowing what he would have to do, hating every second of it. "Thank you," he said sadly, immediately flooing to Ginny's.

"Absolutely not!" Ginny exclaimed, fiercely clutching her son to her body. "You are not taking him anywhere without me, Remus Lupin!" How dare he! How could he ever think she would go along with this? There was no way she would allow her son to go through such a horrible thing without her there by his side. "Have you gone mad?"

Remus had fought within himself to remain calm, knowing Ginny's reaction would be less than favorable, however, thirty minutes into the conversation had tried his patience. "Listen to me, Ginny!" he exclaimed. "He has to change this first time! If he doesn't, he will slowly go mad and it will kill him. He will be safe at my house. You will not be safe there with him but I will be." He understood she was upset but wasn't listening to a word he was saying.

"No!" Ginny yelled again, cradling her son's head as he cried, knowing this was why she'd sent Remus' owl away each time it visited. "I forbid it! I will have to go. He needs his mother, Remus!" Fire burned deep in the emeralds that were boring holes into him. How could he think she would just let him take William? He would need her more than ever!

Remus had waited until the last possible second he could before showing up unannounced, which in hindsight was probably not the best idea, but now could wait no longer. It hadn't been his fault she refused to read his notes where he explained what would happen. "He needs his mother to be healthy," he told her, not trying to hide his frustration any longer. "You cannot risk getting bit! Why can't you listen to me? He's a werewolf, Ginny! He has to do this!" He ran a hand through his hair, ready to scream. He'd never seen her so unreasonable!

"No, no, no!" Ginny yelled again, shaking her head. "Put a charm over me or something! Dammit, Remus, he's not going without me!" It was not an option as far as she was concerned. She was going and that was that, unable to believe his audacity.

Remus had had enough. He was already on edge with the impending full moon but now was even worse, knowing the boy's fate if he didn't intervene and shocked with her irrational way of thinking, well past trying to understand her emotions. He knew Ginny was terrified, but right this minute he didn't care, especially since she'd ignored him. "I'm. Taking. Him," he said through clenched teeth, ripping the small boy from her arms and instantly disapparating from Ginny's place.

"Remus!" she cried out in desperation and shock. "Damn you!" Anger consumed her shaking body as she fell to the floor, horrible images flashing before her, and sobbed until her throat hurt. Then she cleaned herself up and immediately flooed to Hogwarts, rage still coursing through her veins. This had to be stopped.

"Albus, you have to bring him back!" Ginny immediately wailed when she stepped from the fireplace in his office. "He took William! That insensitive….wolf…took my son!"

With the serene smile that drove some mad, Albus said quietly, "He has taken him to his home to allow the first change." He was not surprised to see her but was alarmed at her indignance, hoping she would have listened to Remus.

"Please!" she cried, angry tears spilling from her eyes. "Tell him to bring him back! Or at least let me go to him!" She sat down in one of the large leather chairs, her arms extending onto his desk shaking terribly. "He's just a baby! That son of a bitch had no right to do this!" She was pissed and didn't care who heard her.

Albus stood up, ignoring her harsh words, and walked over to the fireplace, grabbing a handful of powder so he could contact Severus and Hermione.

"Am I interrupting anything?" he asked, head appearing in flames.

Hermione looked up from the book she'd been helping Malachai read. "No, Albus," she answered. "Is everything ok?"

"I'm afraid not," he said quietly. "I need you and your husband in my office please."

"Certainly," Hermione told him. "I'll ask Minerva to watch Malachai."

"Thank you," he said, retreating from the flames and slowly standing, walking back to his desk. "I really should remember to spell the fireplace to lift." He shook his head and sat down gingerly.

"Albus, please," Ginny continued, still crying, wiping tears from her eyes. "He's just a baby. He's scared. He doesn't know what's going on. I'm so angry with Remus! How dare that ass take my child from me! William is all I have left!" Then the intense sobbing began. "I thought Remus was my friend but he's just a selfish bastard!"

"Remus is acting in the best interest of the child," Albus told her calmly. "He is correct. William will have to allow this change the first time. His fate will be much worse if it is denied."

"...my baby..."

"...is safe...," Albus finished, noticing the glow in his fireplace, watching as Severus stepped out, followed by Hermione.

"Headmaster," Severus acknowledged with a nod of his head.

"This is the first full moon since William's encounter," Albus told them, fingers entwined and resting on the desk. "Remus has taken William to his home for the change to occur in safety."

"But what about the potion?" Hermione inquired, confused with the scene before her. "I thought that's what the Wolfsbane potion was for." Why did he have to change at all?

"The first change must be allowed," Severus explained to his wife, voice soft. "If it is not, William will slowly go insane with no reversal possible. He can begin taking the potion thereafter."

"Ginny," Hermione soothed, understanding more with her husband's explanation. "William will be okay. And Remus is the best one to help your son." There was no one more perfect for the situation.

"No!" Ginny wailed, shaking her head. "My baby...he's just a baby...to change...into something so...awful...no..." She dropped her head to her arm and continued crying, unable to believe this was really happening. She just wouldn't believe her beautiful little boy could change into something so…

"Ginny," Albus said, noticing she was not lifting her head and tired of her temper tantrum, whether understandable or not. "Look at me, Child."

Sniffing and wiping her eyes, Ginny lifted her head to look at him, body shaking and struggling to control her breathing.

"Your son is a werewolf. I'm truly sorry but it's fact. And the other fact is that he must change this first time. It will slowly and surely kill him if he doesn't. You should be thankful he has someone to take care of him, to keep him safe and remain unharmed at the same time for there is no other among us who could do what Remus is doing for you," he said sternly. "Your acceptance of his condition, or not, does not change these facts."

"I...it's just..." and then the next flow of tears came as she listened to the truth in his words, allowing Hermione to pull her up into a tight hug.

"Maybe we should return to our chamber?" Hermione asked, looking towards Severus, waiting for him to answer.

"Yes I think we should," he agreed, nodding towards Albus, waiting for his wife to escort Ginny over.

"Thank you for calling us," Hermione told the headmaster, leading her towards the fireplace and Severus. "She'll be okay. I'll talk to her. Maybe another mother will get through."

"I'm so sorry," Ginny said two hours later, clutching a tissue, sitting on the couch with her legs Indian style. "He must absolutely hate me now." It took a little while, but Hermione had finally gotten through to her.

"I doubt it," Hermione said confidently, sitting beside her. "He will understand more than anyone else could." She paused and then added, "You still might want to apologize though." Ginny had said some pretty harsh things that she was certain would somehow find their way back to Remus and reluctantly assumed her husband would have something to do with it.

"I will," she said embarrassed. "It's just...I don't know what to do. Neville was always there to help me with William. I might have been the feisty one but he was always my stronghold. He always kept me grounded and was the voice of reason. Now...I just..."

"Death is never easy to deal with," Severus said, voice low, standing at the fireplace. He'd put Malachai to bed while Hermione tried to talk some sense into Ginny. "But William will need you to be level headed instead of irrational. As scared as you are, as an adult, imagine being a child and dealing with this." Remus was no particular friend but Severus did trust him completely in this circumstance.

Hermione smiled at her husband approvingly and then faced Ginny again. "He has a valid point," she agreed. "Neville was your strength but you will have to be William's. He will need you to think clearly in order to make the best decisions for him."

Ginny remained quiet, biting her lip, knowing they were both right and feeling horrible about her words from earlier.

"You'll be fine," Hermione encouraged, squeezing her hands in support. "I promise."

Ginny was curled up on the couch when Remus returned with William almost two days later.

"Baby!" she exclaimed, the magazine she hadn't really been reading falling to the floor as she rushed over to take her son from Remus. "Are you okay? Are you scared? Mummy's been so worried about you!" She hugged and kissed him frantically, keeping her relieved tears at bay as she clutched him to her.

"I'm sore and sleepy," he said, eyes half closed. "Will you put me to bed?" He just wanted to sleep.

"Yes, Baby," she soothed, glancing at Remus before carrying her son to his room. "Let's go."

Fifteen minutes later, Ginny returned and found him standing at her den window, his back to her.

"He's asleep," she said quietly, thankful he hadn't left.

Remus said nothing, wondering why he hadn't left.

She walked towards him slowly. "I've been so worried," she said, tone apologetic. "He looked better than I thought he would." She really didn't know what to say.

Still facing the window, Remus remained quiet, wondering which would surface first; the anger or hurt.

"Please talk to me," she said barely above a whisper, fighting tears that wanted to fall. She hadn't realized how her outburst a couple days previous would affect him until Hermione had calmed her down and pointed out the obvious that she simply couldn't see at the time. Her heart had broken then and it still was broken, realizing she'd hurt her best friend considerably. He'd never been this cold with her before but understood she deserved it.

He turned to face her then with a mixed look of anger, sadness and disappointment. "How could you not trust me?" he hissed, attempting but not succeeding at hiding the rage that boiled below the surface. "How could you say all those awful things, Ginny?" He didn't even think her capable of such malice, especially towards him. If he hadn't seen first hand how she was when he took William, he never would have believed what he'd heard.

Tears spilled from her eyes as she realized the extent of the pain she'd caused him by her anger and confusion. "Remus, I...I was scared," she cried. "I've lost Neville and...and I'm terrified of losing my son too...and I..."

"What I did was in your son's best interest!" he nearly yelled, eyes boring holes through her. "I would NEVER do anything to harm you or your child. I..." He paused for a moment, regaining a bit of his composure by inhaling deeply, and then continued, lowering his voice. "I care for you both a great deal." He ran a hand through his hair in frustration and turned from her again. "I just can't believe you didn't trust me. After everything we've been through, Ginny." The way she'd treated him the past few days had hurt him more than he wanted to admit.

She'd only been acting on maternal instinct, certainly not wanting to hurt him as that was the last thing she ever wanted to do. "Please," she cried, wiping the salty wetness from her cheeks. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you." She approached him and barely touched his arm with her small fingers. "Please don't hate me, Remus...I need you...I need your friendship, please...I don't think I could handle losing you too."

While Remus was deeply hurt and did understand Ginny's reaction to him taking her son, there was also the second stab from her. "You even went to Hogwarts," he added quietly, shaking his head and looking down. "And said terrible things about me." When he'd learned of her visit to the castle and told the things she'd said, he'd been hurt again, never thinking such poison would fall from her lips, especially about him.

Ginny was crying now and unable to speak, remembering the conversation she'd had with him previously when he'd confessed his feelings of inadequacy, knowing that she'd contributed when she'd said she never would. She covered her face and allowed her tears to flow again. He was the last person she wanted to hurt. Remus was everything to her, especially now. He was her best friend and now she'd hurt him when she hadn't meant to. Would the pain ever stop?

He stood for a second, listening to her cry, hating every second of her tears. "Ginny," Remus said quietly, turning around, his anger slowly dissolving, replaced by sadness. "Don't cry...please." He reached up to remove her hands that covered her freckled red face. He hated to see her cry. He hated the fact Neville was gone. He hated the fact William now suffered the same as he did.

"Can't h-help it," she sniffed, choking on sobs, shaking her head. "I h-hurt you. I didn't m-mean to. It's just..."

"I know," he said, pulling her to him, cradling her head to his shoulder, feeling her arms wrap around his waist, her sobs causing her to shake against him. "Yes I'm hurt but I keep forgetting you're hurting even more than me. Please don't cry over this. William is fine now so let's not dwell on it. I'm sorry too. I should have told you sooner." He swayed slightly as he held her and added, "I could never hate you, Ginny."

When her tears began to subside, she looked up at her friend, eyes red and puffy. "I am sorry," she said. "I can't e-even begin to tell you just h-how much. I won't q-question you again, Remus. I trust you, with m-my life and with my son's. Can you forgive m-me for being a ridiculously scared w-widowed mother?" She forced a smile but it was a grimace at best as she wiped her wet cheeks.

Cupping her freckled face in his warm hands, Remus pulled her to him and kissed her forehead. "Yes if you can forgive me for being a hyper sensitive werewolf," he said with a small smile, hoping things would get better from now on.