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Chapter 28: The Grand Gesture

Draco did not move, he was not even sure he breathed. He just remained, glued to the floor, on his knees, aware of all the physical pain that was shooting through his body but unable to acknowledge it. It paled in comparison to the pain that was ripping through his heart.

He was not sure how long he remained in that state. It must have been all night because when he became aware of the door opening and his mother saying his name repeatedly he also noticed the amount of light in the room had changed. It was much brighter.

"Draco!" Narcissa's smooth voice interrupted his thoughts. "What in the Merlin's name are you doing down there?"

He blinked up at her but said nothing as she crossed the room to kneel beside him.

"Come here love." She said as she slowly pushed him to the side, taking all the pressure off his now numb legs.

She wiped her hand across his cheek to brush something off. It was not until that moment that he realized tears had been intermittently sliding down his cheeks. He did not know how to process that bit of information either. He could not even remember the last time he cried. He was not sure he ever had before now.

"What are you thinking?" Narcissa began again, this time her voice tinted with new exasperation. "Why are you being so ridiculous?"

"Because I ruined all of it. She ran away again." He said in a voice barely above a whisper.

"I know that. I was here when she left. I guess a better question is why are you sitting here rather than looking for her?"

"She obviously doesn't want me to find her." He held out his right hand to reveal the scrap of a note crumpled tightly in his hand.

Narcissa removed it and read the message out loud, sending new waves of white hot pain and guilt searing through Draco's heart. "What's in your other hand?"

He held it out to her and slowly opened it wide, palm facing up. Narcissa gingerly picked up the moonstone pendent from the center revealing an angry red indentation from when he had clutched it tightly for hours.

"Oh Draco…" she said quietly in a strained voice. "Alright, get up! I know you have always had a pension for the dramatic but this is more than enough. You need to get out of here and go find her! Right this moment. I refuse to allow you to just mope around and let her get away from you forever. You are the perfect couple."

"She doesn't want me anymore."

"Yes she does. You just lost your mind for what better be a temporary period of time. Get out there and make the grand gesture Draco. Show her, don't tell her, that she made the right choice loving you."

"It is no use mum. She left. I don't even know where she is."

"I know that you are intelligent enough to come up with a short list of where she could be, and if you can't figure it out then maybe you don't deserve her." With that Narcissa stood up and showed herself out.

It took only a minute or so after his mother's departure for Draco to realize that once again she was entirely right. He needed to fight harder to save his marriage and to keep the girl he loved. And if he wasn't willing to fight than he didn't deserve someone like Ginny.

He pushed himself off the floor and fought through the pain of the feeling striving to return to his legs as he headed out the door and down to the apperation room, a short list of locations to check already forming in his mind.

Draco apperated as close to the Burrow as he dared and quietly crept closer to the house along the edge of the woods. He had already checked her apartment and when there was no sign of anyone having lived there for weeks he assumed that the next most likely place she would go would be home to her family. Now that he had arrived though he had no idea what he was doing so close to what could easily be considered enemy territory unaccompanied.

He knew that he should turn around and go back to the manor and send her an owl imploring… no, begging her to come back to him so that they could talk it out. But that would not be enough, no she would never even acknowledge the letter, not that he would deserve that courtesy.

He considered the option that what he was about to do was more than a bit risky but in his heart he felt it was the right thing even if his head was screaming at him to stop being stupid. His mother's words just kept echoing in his mind over and over and over again. "Make the grand gesture Draco. Show her, don't tell her, that she made the right choice loving you."

He took a deep steadying breath and stepped away from the shelter of the trees. He decided right then that the best course of action was going to be the surprise attack of most direct route and so he walked straight across the front yard of the bizarre little house and marched up the three uneven steps to reach the front door.

It was at this point that his courage began to falter.

He honestly was crazy for doing this. He had no clue who would answer that door once he knocked but at this point it really didn't matter. He realized that because she was in there he had already resolved himself to use any means necessary to get to her. He would break down the door; subdue her brothers, anything that he had to get to her so he could beg her to listen to him if nothing else. But first he forced himself to smooth his face into a calm exterior and then lightly knocked on the door.

Much to his dismay the first person to come to the door was Ron.

"What do you want Malfoy?" Ron asked venomously through gritted teeth.

Draco did his best not to show the other man the same blatant dislike that he felt radiating of the other. He needed Ron to let him in the house. "I really need to speak to Ginny."

"Well she doesn't want to see you so I think you should just bugger off."

It took every ounce of his strength not to just punch his longtime enemy and force his way in. "I am going to see her. She is my wife. I have every right to at least talk to her."

Draco paused for a moment as he watched the other man's jaw set in determination.

"No."

The wheels in Draco's head began to turn. If Ron refused to let him in to see Ginny then he would just have to find another way to communicate with her. He spun on his heel and down the three steps back into the yard. He looked straight at Ron for just a moment before lifting his head up to gaze at the rest of the house. He briefly wondered which room his love was hiding in before carrying out the latest version of plan get-Ginny-back: screaming her name repeatedly at the top of his lungs in the hopes that she would come out.

For a moment Ron was stunned. What in the bloody hell was the crazy Slytherin man doing? Once he had recovered slightly he decided that for his sister's sake Malfoy needed to stop.

He headed out of the door and down the steps to tackle the blond man. Draco though moved out of the way just in time causing Ron to rush past him before stopping and making another pass. Ron began to chase Draco around the yard with the one staying just ahead of the other like a pale fox the hunting dog could never quite reach and all the while during their display Draco just continued to call for Ginny.

After nearly five minutes of the sheer nonsense both of them came to an immediate halt at the sound of two words from the Weasley matriarch who had made her way through the crowd of her other children gathered to watch the spectacle. "Stop it!" She thundered. "Get in this house right this second, the pair of you. What has come over you two? A pair of grown men acting like complete children!"

The whole group of people filed back into the house with Draco, Ron and Mrs. Weasley bringing up the rear to make sure that they couldn't cause any more commotion.

As soon as Draco entered the house though all thoughts of what had occurred vanished from his mind as his eyes locked with the most amazing set of chocolate brown ones he loved more than any other in the world. "Ginny." He breathed.

Ginny had been sitting waiting on the steps for quite some time just observing her husband and her brother acting like total fools. When her mother had passed by her perch she had been very cross with Ginny for not ending the spectacle herself but Ginny only shrugged in reply. She still hadn't decided whether she had wanted Ron to catch Draco or not when Mrs. Weasley put a stop to everything and forced everyone, including her estranged lover, back into the house.

"Hello Draco." she said quietly in response to his shock.

"Don't talk to him Ginny! You don't have to say anything! We can get rid of him in five seconds if you don't want him here." Ron quickly interjected

She stood up slowly and stared at both men. "But I want to talk to him."

"No. I don't think that is such a good idea Gin. You have been through enough already, why prolong your agony? You can get rid of him and we'll get you a divorce and then you can pretend that this whole thing never happened." He tried to assure her needlessly.

She almost laughed out loud at his last statement. The time for cleanly severing all ties to Draco had passed several weeks ago and was now gone forever. Her brother's reassurances did nothing but add salt to the already open wound. Plus now that Draco was here and clearly trying to ;make an effort she felt compelled to hear him out.

"I want to talk to him." she insisted.

"No Gin." Ron pressed again.

"Ron, at which point did you decide that you had any involvement in my love life?" Ginny said sarcastically as she stared down her brother now even more annoyed than the first time that he was still attempting to control her.

"Really? You're going to ask me that Gin?" he said sounding genuinely shocked. "Alright if you want to go there, who was the one who found you a sobbing mess on the steps of 12 Grimmauld Place two days before you were due to be there and had to physically carry you into the house? Who was the one who spent countless nights holding you as you cried yourself to sleep over something or someone unknown without any explanation and then just have to act normal when you would just pretend nothing was the matter all the next day till you crawled in my bed the next night and the cycle repeated itself?

"Me, Ginny, me! You are the one who involved me and don't think that I didn't put two and two together. I knew it was him," he practically shouted at his beloved little sister while gesturing emphatically at her lover. "You were crying over the whole time. I know everyone has always assumed that I am both blind and stupid but I believe me that I am not. I always saw you when you would sneak away to meet him in your fifth year and the looks you would give him across the Great Hall or even the bloody Quidditch Pitch, not to mention new jewelry would miraculously would materialize in your possession on a regular basis that only someone with his kind of money would be able to afford. I'm so sorry that I am not as dumb as you wanted me to be but I will be damned if I let him waltz back in here and sweep you away again. All he ever does is hurt you!"

Ron finally stopped talking but his eyes never left Ginny's.

The pain and determination that Ginny saw there made her pause to think, was Ron right? Her eyes tore away from her brother's and flicked to Draco. She was positive that she loved him but would that be enough? Was it better for them to live apart?

Before she could decide for herself though, she saw for the first time a change in Draco's unwavering expression.

"Ron's right." He whispered much to the surprise of everyone in the room. "All I ever do is hurt you." The audible pain in his voice was heart wrenching but resolute. "If I really love you I should let you go, let you forget about me and everything I have put you through."

He slowly forced himself to turn around and make his way back through the sea of spectators towards the front door, not looking at anyone, jaw set indomitably against the pain. His determination to find her and bring her back had been as strong as iron because it was what he wanted but only this new notion could ever had over ridden that resolve: that this would be best for her and he now found that that was truly all that mattered.

NO! Ginny's mind screamed at her as she felt her heart leap into her throat as she practically lurched off of the stairs, all traces of Ron's doubts gone completely from her mind. Suddenly it was all clear: she needed him. It was as simple as that. She was also sure that if he walked out that door it would be the last time that she ever saw him. That was entirely unacceptable. She knew now more than ever that no matter what they trials they faced, she needed him to live, to give her life meaning. Her plan from yesterday now seemed utterly pointless because she never would have been able to totally cut him out no matter how hard she might have tried. He really was the sun in her life.

"Oy Malfoy." She called out in a voice that was impressively steady for all the emotions that were coursing through her body. "What in the bloody hell do you think you are doing? You put all this effort into getting in here to talk to me and now you are just going to turn around and decide you don't want me anymore?"

Draco stopped but did not turn around. "Of course I want you but I need to do what's best for you."

She could not help from rolling her eyes at his overly dramatic display. What a Malfoy. She really hoped she could steer her own child away from this particular family trait. "I am so sick of people telling me what is best for me." She glanced pointedly at Ron with this statement before returning full attention to Draco. "Why don't you all let me try for a change?" She hopped off the step and crossed the room to where he stood. Forcing him to turn to face her, she looked into his eyes and said: "First of all, I need to say before anything else that are the biggest arsehole I have ever met in my entire life. You are jealous, self centered and self important and most of the time I absolutely hate you."

Draco nodded his knowingly, more than accepting of the negative characterization she bestowed on him.

"Putting all of that nonsense aside though," she continued. "You, Draco Malfoy, are probably the best thing that has ever happened to me and for some reason I am absolutely and completely irrevocably in love with you."

Draco's eyes widened a bit. She had yet to be so straight forward with her pronouncements in this portion of their relationship, this was shocking to him all things considered. "Why? You just said yourself that I'm awful and you're right, I am. You deserve someone so much better than I am."

"What happened to the man who promised me that he would fight for me and never let me go?"

"He finally realized what was best for you and that is all he wants."

Ginny could see she was really getting nowhere. His face was frozen in place revealing none of the emotions she was sure he was feeling: no sadness, no vulnerability. She was fed up. There really was no way of removing it other than some sort of shock to break his concentration… and so she slapped him across the face. The desired effect was instantaneous as she watched the Malfoy mask slide off his perfect face and pure rage to replace it.

"Stop this right now!" she practically screamed in frustration. "You don't get to say what's best for me any more than my idiot brother. I love you and I want you and god knows you want me too otherwise we both know that you would never have gone through this humiliation. Stop trying to push me away! Just say yes love, kiss me and take me home!"

She stopped and took a breath as they locked eyes with mirrored rage, both wordlessly fighting the other, daring them to give in. The moments ticked by and neither showed any sign of caving when finally Mrs. Weasley chimed in, "For the gods' sake boy, kiss her already!"

Draco's mouth twitched and his eyes flooded with mirth. 'Well,' he thought to himself, 'I guess this is it. My big moment of truth… 'a grand gesture.' He shook his head as his face broke into a smile as he remembered his mother's dramatic words from earlier. Slowly he reached out and grasped onto Ginny's hips, surprising her as he tugged her closer. He leaned down and ever so softly pressed his lips to her own.

She squeaked with what he could only assume was joy and wrapped her arms around his neck to deepen the kiss as his arms more securely found her waist. There they remained for several moments oblivious to the clapping and cat calls of almost all the others in the room before he lifted her up off the ground and spun them around, both laughing.

Finally, he placed her gently back on the ground. Draco leaned his forehead against hers. He had never been this happy in his entire life. "Can we go home now?" he whispered.

She smiled at him and whispered back, "Yes… but don't you dare think that this whole display gets you off the hook for last night."

"Yes, love. Of course not dear."

"Ok, so exactly how long do I have to grovel before we can start to move on from my transgressions last night?" Draco asked candidly as he trailed up the stairs behind Ginny.

"For a very, very long time." Ginny assured him.

"That is pretty much what I figured." He sighed as they came to a halt in front of the first door. "Can I still sleep with you tonight? Or am I banished to my own room?"

Ginny bit her lip. "Well… I know I should kick you out but I think I have had enough of being without you for a bit… We do need to talk though."

Draco grimaced. "Yeah, I know." He said as he followed her up to her room.

Ginny smiled to herself sarcastically and thought 'I seriously doubt that.'

When they entered the room Ginny immediately began to dig through Draco's pockets to find her suitcases. Once she found them she re-enlarged them and quickly changed into the pajamas that she knew had been shoved into the top of one of the bags. She would try to beat the houseelves to unpacking for her tomorrow, tonight she just needed to rest.

For his part, Draco had been sent to his own room to retrieve his own night clothes while she changed. It took him less than a minute to grab them and return to the doorway but in that time a new thought had occurred to him that he already desperately wanted to share. "You know what I think?" Draco began as he waited for permission to enter the room.

Ginny, who was just crawling into bed stretched and struggled to force out the words "Come in and what?" around a yawn.

"I think we should knock out the wall between our rooms and redo this whole section. I'm tired of having two separate rooms, one mine and one yours. I think we need one space that specifically for both of us at the same time."

"Are you asking me to move in with you Mr. Malfoy?"

Draco chuckled. "If that's the way you want to look at then yes, Mrs. Malfoy, that is exactly what I am doing."

"Don't you think that might be a little bit fast considering everything that has transpired in the last two days?" she said, staring at him intently with one eyebrow raised.

"Not at all actually. I'm looking at it as more of a strike while the iron is hot type scenario, I learned that from my grandfather."

Ginny couldn't help but giggle. She had to give it to him that Draco Malfoy was nothing if not unashamedly daring. "Alright, I'll bite. I am not opposed to the idea of redecorating but what if instead we…" she began before her self consciousness got the better of her, forcing her to pause and chew on her bottom lip in fear. She knew that she had to tell him sooner or later and it really did need to be the former for her own mental state what with all that had occurred over the last day or so but that did not make it any easier for her to just come out and tell him that she was pregnant.

"Go on." He urged as his fingers began to deftly work his way down the buttons on his shirt.

"What if we left the wall and turned it into a nursery?"

He looked up at her contemplatively. "I suppose that that could definitely work, and it really would be incredibly convenient in the long run. We can just let whichever room we pick to lay dormant or whatever till, you know, we need it. Honestly you can do whatever you want, I'm just happy that you are even still considering this to be long term enough that you are actually thinking about having children with me eventually!"

Ginny couldn't help but giggle. "Yes, I am still very much open to the idea of having children with you, in fact, to be honest… we might need the nursery quite a bit sooner than you would think."

His fingers automatically paused in their decent. He looked up with her, his big grey eyes round as saucers with the shock of what he was trying to process. "What are you saying?" he asked quietly in a voice completely devoid of any emotion.

His tone made Ginny more nervous than ever but she bravely stuck up her chin and met his eyes as she said clearly: "Draco… I'm pregnant."

Draco stood staring at Ginny, his hands hanging limply at his sides, his mouth completely ajar. Had he heard her correctly? Yes he must have. Those are not words that the mind makes up.

His whole body filled with a mixture of emotions: pure joy and pure terror. Before that moment Draco would have believed those emotions mutually exclusive but now he was not sure how the two had ever become divorced in the first place.

Ginny had scooted to the bottom of the bed and was now returning his stare nervously. "Drae… love… Draco, say something."

He voice seemed to slowly awaken him from his stunned pause. "We're having a baby?" he asked quietly, his voice cracking slightly on the final word a betrayal of his emotion.

Ginny's face lit up as she nodded her assent. "Yes, we are."

Draco face lit up. He crossed the room in a second and scooped her up off the bed. He twirled them around as he showered her face with kisses in between shouting 'we're having a baby!' at the top of his voice.

Ginny clutched onto his neck and laughed as she allowed herself to be repeatedly twirled. This was better than any reaction she had dared to hope for. Draco was truly delighted by her news and she had had nothing to worry about.

As he gently placed her back on the ground she looked up into his molten silver eyes and from what she saw there she knew… They were going to be a happy family.

Officially/Unofficially the end. Epilogue has been written for a year and will follow within the week based on numbers. Thanks for all the support!

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