Chapter 7 – Challenges
A week after Xeno Lovegood's passing, Ginny and Luna were sitting in the living room one afternoon listening to the Bulgaria-France Quidditch match. This was a common occurrence, as they always tried to keep up with Viktor's career while he was gone. Charlie had a couple of days off and had taken the floo to France to attend the game and see Viktor. The match was hard fought and an hour and twenty minutes into the game the announcer began yelling "..and Krum takes off to the right. I think he sees the snitch! Lapasse follows him. Yes, it looks like they both see the snitch. Ooh, and Krum dives. He's reaching…I think, oh no Krum is hit..that was a nasty bludger blow. He's falling, no wait, he's leveled off and yes, yes, Krum has the snitch! Bulgaria takes the game 640-390. And it looks like Krum is hurting, he's landed but not standing. Looks like the medi-wizards have him. He's being levitated off the field, but he's still waving at the crowd." Ginny and Luna were leaned forward waiting for more news on Viktor, but the announcer signed off with nothing further. They looked at each other, concerned, but unable to do anything from home. Ginny switched the radio off as she and Luna waited for news from Charlie.
Almost two hours later, the floo began to swirl and Charlie appeared in the flames. Both women jumped forward, eager for news as Charlie began. "Hello. I know you all probably heard the game and are worried. Vik is going to be okay. He has a broken arm and some bruised ribs, but they are patching him up quickly. Had a bit of confusion when I went to see him, but we'll talk about that later. He's been ordered to take a week's rest, so I'll be bringing him home tomorrow as soon as he is released. He sends hugs to you both and says not to worry." As Charlie finished, the fire calmed and he disappeared. Ginny let out a breath that she hadn't realized she was holding and reached to embrace Luna. They sat for a few minutes and then went on to bed.
Ginny woke the next morning and decided to let Luna sleep in. She had had a busy week and had been looking tired again, so Ginny carefully tiptoed out to the kitchen. It was still a bit early to make breakfast, so Ginny decided to make a lemon pie since it was a favorite of both Charlie and Viktor. Once the pie was baking, she made a simple breakfast and went to wake Luna. They ate a quiet breakfast, both wondering when the guys would be home. The pie finished and Ginny pulled it out shortly before leaving for the shop. Luna took her time and left for the Quibbler about an hour after Ginny.
The day was busy for both witches and they returned home at their usual time that evening and were thrilled to find Viktor and Charlie reclining in living room reading. They each went over to hug Viktor gently and welcome him home. Charlie put down his book and held out his arms as Ginny and Luna finished with Viktor and went to hug him as well. Then they sat down and waited for the details that Charlie hadn't been able to deliver via floo.
"So Viktor, how are you doing? Charlie said they patched you up well, but you don't look entirely well yet."
"Oh, I'm doing better. The bones have been mended and I've got a salve for the bruises. I'm still tender, but in a week I should be well enough to play. I'll miss one game, but that will give young Daskalov a chance to try to live up to the standard I've set. And it gives me time to come home. By the way, thanks for the pie. I smelled it the minute we arrived."
"Yes he did and he didn't even give me a chance to settle before he began demanding a piece. That was lunch by the way, two pieces of pie." Charlie smirked.
"So Viktor, with the last win, that puts Bulgaria on track for the finals, right?"
"Yes. We have three more games and if we win two of those we should go, as long as we don't lose more than 420 points combined between the matches. I think we'll do it, as long as Daskalov lives up to his potential."
"Excellent. So, if Bulgaria goes to the finals, will you be able to get three tickets for all of us to attend?"
"I don't see an issue with that Ginny."
Luna looked worried. "That's great Viktor, but if we all attend, won't that cause questions."
"Maybe, but we just won't bother to answer. The team already knows about Charlie. I'll just bring along a couple more friends and not volunteer any additional information."
"That brings up another topic that I wanted to discuss between all of us." Charlie began.
Ginny, Viktor and Luna all looked over at Charlie and wondered why he looked so worried.
"Vik, I haven't told you this yet, because I just wanted to get you home and settled first, but I had a problem getting to see you when they took you to the hospital after the match. I'm not a blood relation and nothing on your team paperwork lists me as next of kin so they didn't want to let me in. Aleksander was there and he bullied the staff enough that they gave in. I've thought about this a couple of times before, but your injury brings up something important. I know we are keeping our relationship to ourselves, but in case of emergencies, that's a problem. If you don't have an objection, the first thing I'm going to do when I get back to the reserve is to get my paperwork updated with you as my primary next of kin. Do you have an issue with that?"
Viktor got up from his seat and crossed to Charlie. He looked him in the eyes as he responded. "No Charlie, that's an excellent idea. I should do the same. I'm getting tired of hiding. I love you." Then he kissed Charlie deeply before returning to the couch.
Luna was the next to speak. "That's a good idea Charlie. I hadn't thought about that problem. With dad gone now I have no one listed as my next of kin. I need to take care of that. There's too much at stake with the Quibbler." Then she turned to Ginny. "Ginny, I guess now's a good time to talk. I think we have an unspoken agreement, but I need to make sure I am correct on where we are at with our relationship. I love you and I have for years. It may have taken a while, but I think we're settled. I know I don't want to ever be with anyone else. I know there is no way we can make ourselves legal with any kind of ceremony, but would you be okay with me changing all my legal paperwork to have you as my primary beneficiary?"
Ginny wiped away a few tears and went to sit on Luna's lap. "Of course Luna. And I am in complete agreement. As far as I'm concerned, you're my life partner. I'll do the same and contact my solicitor to get my papers in order." Then they began kissing and began to lose themselves in each other.
Charlie cleared his throat and brought Luna and Ginny back to the present. "I'm glad that we're in agreement with each of our partners, but we need to talk about the four of us as well. Ginny's my sister and knows that I adore her, but I am going to admit that I've fallen in love with Luna also. Not as in love as I am with Vik, but I'm happy and my preference is that the four of us stay together permanently. What do you all think?"
Everyone was silent for a minute until Luna pulled Ginny up off her lap and stood up. Taking Ginny by the hand, Luna then reached out and pulled Viktor off the couch. The three then crossed the room to Charlie and smiled down on him. Charlie stood and the four lovers embraced. "So we're agreed? We're a family? Good or bad?" "Agreed" "Agreed" "Agreed" "Agreed". They said nothing else for the next few minutes while they held each other in a large group hug, wonderfully content that what had been unofficial was now officially agreed.
They broke apart and each person returned to their seats and the conversation moved on to more mundane topics.
Later that evening, Viktor and Charlie lay in bed after an hour of gentle lovemaking. Charlie looked down and kissed Viktor. "Thank you for making me happy." Viktor just smiled.
Across the hall, Ginny and Luna lay panting for a few minutes before they curled up together. "So I guess this means we're kind of engaged." "Hmm yes, and thank you. I've never been happier."
Later that week each of the four partners visited their separate solicitors and had their medical directives and wills updated. Each listed their primary partner and then listed secondary partners as well. All four were successful in their fields and the solicitors agreed that updating the paperwork was a wise idea. They may have been a bit surprised by the pairings, but they remained professional and completed the changes as requested.
A week after his injury, Viktor returned to the Quidditch pitch. He wasn't quite as fast as usual, but he still ensured a Bulgarian victory in their next to last game. Another week went by and Bulgaria took a last hard fought victory, ensuring their place in the finals two weeks later in South Africa. Viktor returned home with three tickets for his partners and was greeted with a magnificent meal of roast duck. The champagne flowed and everyone was in high spirits. Viktor had five days home before he would need to leave for final practices in South Africa. He and Charlie spent as much time together as possible, although he did share and gave Ginny a night with Viktor as well.
Two days before Viktor was due to leave, Ginny came home and found the guys working on dinner, but no sign of Luna.
"Hi guys. Smells yummy in here. Is Luna home yet?"
"Yes, she didn't look well though. She went to her room. I asked her if she's be eating, but she didn't answer me."
Ginny frowned and headed down the hall to her bedroom to check on Luna. When she opened the door, she found Luna face down on the bed.
"Hi Luna love, I'm home. I heard you weren't feeling well. What is it?"
Luna looked up and Ginny saw she had been crying. She crossed to the bed and pulled Luna into her arms. "Love, what's wrong?"
"Oh Ginny. I've ruined everything."
Luna began crying again and Ginny held her, waiting for her to calm down. Luna gathered herself after a couple of minutes. "Ginny. I..I'm..I'm pregnant."
Ginny felt her stomach do several flips and took a moment to catch her breath. "What? Are you sure?"
Luna reached across the nightstand and pulled out a potion bottle. Ginny instantly recognized the potion. She'd taken a couple herself during pregnancy scares. "Oh! Well I guess you are. I assume it's Charlie's?"
"Of course. As much as I'd love to have your baby Ginny, we haven't figured out that level of magic yet. Remember the night when I beat him at Gobstones? Viktor was out of town and you had that pile of paperwork and sent me to him? Well, he never gave me a chance to cast the charm."
Ginny remembered back. "Of course, that was the night I had to silence the room because you didn't have a chance."
"I know. One time I slip up and look what happens. We've all been doing so well and now I'm afraid this will ruin everything."
Ginny looked at Luna and took a couple minutes before she replied. "Okay Luna, this is unplanned, but I'm happy. I don't know how the guys will take it. Actually, I think Charlie will probably be happy. He loves kids. Of course, it may take a while. I hope we can all stay together, but even if we can't I won't leave you. I've thought about having a family one day, but I figured it was out of the question. Would you mind raising the baby with me, even if it's just us?"
"No Ginny, of course not. I am hoping it won't be just us, but I can't expect too much."
"Well then, I guess we need to go have a talk with Charlie and Viktor. Are you ready?"
"I suppose."
Ginny gave Luna a brief kiss and took her to the bathroom to wash her face. Then Ginny took her hand and led Luna to the living room, where she settled Luna on a couch. Ginny then turned and went to the kitchen.
"Charlie, Viktor, can we put dinner on hold for a few minutes?"
Seeing the concerned look on Ginny's face, Viktor turned off his pots and covered them. "Sure Ginny, what's up?"
Ginny took hold of each of them and led them into the living room. Seeing Luna's puffy eyes and worried look, Charlie went over to her at once. "Luna, what's wrong. Are you sick? Something wrong at the Quibbler?"
Luna opened her mouth to try to speak, but all that came out was a small sob and Ginny decided to take over.
"Charlie, Viktor, maybe we should all sit." The guys did as instructed and Ginny continued. "There's no easy way to say this. Luna is not sick. She's pregnant. The baby is Charlie's of course."
The room was dead silent for ten seconds, then Charlie jumped out of his chair and let out a giant whoop of excitement. Then he turned to Viktor with a horrified look. "Oh no, I'm so sorry Vik."
Luna found her voice. "Yes, I'm sorry too, I've ruined everything."
Ginny looked at Viktor and he was just sitting, stunned. Then he did an amazing thing. He got up out of his seat and went over to sit down next to Luna as he drew her into his arms. "Luna, Charlie, Ginny. It's okay. A shock definitely, but I'm okay. I know Charlie's happy, he's great with kids. I know he was resigned to only being an uncle, but I'm happy he's going to have the one thing I can't give him."
Luna looked up and wiped her face. "So no one is angry? What is going to happen to all of us? I mean Ginny has agreed to stay with me, but I don't know how Charlie and Viktor feel."
"Well I want my child! As far as I'm concerned, we remain a family. Our child will have four parents to love them. We just have to make sure we don't spoil him or her too much between all of us. What does everyone else think?"
Luna smiled for the first time that evening and Viktor lifted her off the couch as he crossed the room to Charlie, who pulled Ginny up out of her chair. They embraced and stayed holding each other until Luna's small sobs quieted. Then they pulled apart and went to finish preparing dinner.
As they ate, Charlie brought up the question that he had been wondering since the announcement. "So Luna, when exactly did this happen?"
"Remember the night I beat you at Gobstones?"
A look of recognition crossed Charlie's face. "Oh, that makes sense. I was missing Vik so bad and then you did your little victory dance I about lost it. By the time you came to me, I didn't give you a chance to cast anything. This is definitely my fault."
"Well, I seem to remember enjoying the night myself. I mean it does take two." Luna smirked.
Viktor laughed and Ginny was happy to see that her family was adjusting to the news.
Charlie spoke up again. "So I guess the next thing we need to discuss is our living situation. Do we want to stay here in the flat? We can always move the exercise equipment out of the third bedroom. Or do you think we should look at getting a family home?"
Everyone contemplated for a few minutes and it was Viktor who replied first. "I think now that we are all committed to each other, we should look at getting a place for all of us, especially if the family is going to be growing."
Charlie smiled. "Sounds like you may be thinking down the road Vik. Planning on more kids?'
Viktor laughed. "Let's start with this one and see how we do."
Ginny and Luna both smiled and they all agreed to start looking at houses after they returned from the championship. With everyone accepting of the situation and moving forward, the tension in the room settled and everyone began to eat in earnest.
Later that evening, they were all settled back in the living room. Charlie was lying on the couch with his head in Viktor's lap. Luna was sitting in a chair with Ginny on the floor in front of her, leaning against Luna's legs. They were discussing plans for the next day, when Luna was going to go to the doctor for her first prenatal checkup. They'd agreed that Charlie would go as the father and Viktor and Ginny would play the supportive in-laws. As these details were finalized, Ginny felt it was finally time to bring up a major topic that had been worrying her.
"Okay, so we've come to an agreement between us now, but there is something else we need to think about. What do we tell our family Charlie? They already think you and Luna are dating. We can't hide the pregnancy and you know mum is going to go ballistic and immediately insist on a wedding. That's what she did when Hermione got pregnant."
Charlie sighed. "I know. Here is what I think. Let me know if you all agree. After the championship, I think we all need to go to the next family dinner together. We'll go with the story that Luna is my girlfriend and Vik is your boyfriend. That way we can at least have all the family together. Then I'll deliver the news about the baby. The next part will be difficult. When mum insists on a wedding, I'll inform her that Luna and I are going to seek a non-conventional union and there won't be a wedding, but we will be living together and raising our child. What do you think?"
Ginny's eyes were huge. "Well, the story may work, but let's start practicing our defensive spells before we go."
Viktor laughed and replied. "It works for me, I'd like to be a part of the family, even if we can't be true with them."
"Luna? Your thoughts?"
"Yes, I suppose that will work. I wish we could be honest, but I think they will accept your story a lot easier than they would the truth."
They continued discussing small details as the night wound down when Viktor paused and seemed to be thinking hard.
"Knut for your thoughts Vik."
"Oh. I was just thinking, trying to decide if I should tell the team. I'm not sure."
"What would you tell them Vik? 'My boyfriend's sister's girlfriend is pregnant with my boyfriend's baby and we are all going to raise it together.' I know your mates are accepting of us, but how well would that go?"
"Hmm, yes, maybe I'll just keep this private."
With that, everyone decided to call it a night and each couple retreated to their separate bedrooms.