A/N: It is Hinny vacation time... I have so many fun things planned for this part. Can't wait to share those!
PSA: I will be very busy in the coming two months! I am helping my sister move houses, I am directing a play (don't even ask, I am not sure who left me in charge) AND my job needs me to go back into the office some days a week. Evidently, all of that is cutting into my writing time so on the whole my updates will likely slow down a bit. I am trying to write ahead a little more and I am trying to write faster (with mixed results) so we will see. Just so you know.
Harry walked up to the canopy swing. It seemed to be Ginny's current favourite spot. She had her legs stretched out on it, leaning against the side as it swayed. She moved her feet up a bit so Harry could sit down beside her.
"Did you get some reading done over the weekend?" he asked, nodding at the four books. She had one of them open on her lap.
Ginny closed it and showed him the cover. "A book about unexpected pregnancy. Apparently, our specific situation isn't all that common," she said with the hint of a smile.
He returned her smile. "Have you learned anything?"
"The other books were about details of pregnancy I may have rather not learned but this one..." She put her hand on it and sighed. "It says that a relationship like ours rarely works out and that we should be realistic about it. The whole new relationship with a kid is just too complicated."
Harry's brow furrowed. "That couldn't be further from the truth and that is not us at all."
Ginny looked up at him in surprise.
"This isn't some blind puppy love," he continued. "We didn't meet in April, and I did not start loving you in April." He turned to her, the words escaping of their own accord. "It started when Ron told you I'd be in your class, and you pulled me along and introduced me to your friends so I wouldn't be alone." He breathed in, keeping his gaze locked on hers. "It was only you who wouldn't pry with questions about the time I went missing that I couldn't answer. You just accepted it when I said I couldn't say. It's you almost breaking my nose trying to get the ball out of my hands because you're competitive and you wanted to win so badly." His expression softened. "I just entirely missed the point where it turned into romantic love. Maybe it was when we both decided to study the same thing together because that sounded like a good idea. Or maybe it was the first pang when I was 20 and you said you had a boyfriend again and I was sure I was just worried for your well-being. When I wanted to hug you, it only had to do with the fact that I wanted to comfort you." He bit his lip, taking another deep breath. "Or, maybe it was the night the fire alarm went off at the dorms and you refused to move until you spotted me and Ron couldn't convince you to move, and I was so glad to find you out there waiting for me safe and sound. But your book." He pointed at it. "Doesn't know shit."
Ginny's eyes had grown softer as he spoke, and she seemed a little teary-eyed. She put the book down beside her. She crawled over to him and pulled him close, her face pressed against his arm. She took several more moments to talk. "You should say that at our wedding. Well, maybe without the last part."
His arms moved to hold her. She settled between his legs, looking at him.
"I really pushed a button there, didn't I?" she asked softly.
He hummed in reply. "It is my Ginny button. It's very sensitive."
She chuckled and placed a kiss on his cheek.
"I know there are people who judge us," he told her. "And I know it doesn't particularly bother you, but it just hits a nerve with me sometimes. I don't need a book to tell me the same thing."
She nodded slowly. "The book doesn't know our specific situation. I am just reading it in the hopes of seeing the pitfalls and... fixing it before it becomes unfixable. I really want this to work."
"I know that," he murmured.
Ginny looked away for a moment. "It's not that it doesn't bother me, and I know people judge. And it is going to get worse because I won't be able to hide this kiddo for much longer." She locked eyes with him again. "I just try not to dwell on it because I know what we mean to each other, and all those other people don't matter." She took his hand and squeezed it. "And everyone who does truly know us, they are rooting for us. I think that's very telling."
He ran his free hand through his hair. "I know you're right."
Her face broke out in a smile. His hand came to rest on her belly.
"Fire alarms do bring out your priorities. I should have known then... was that in October?" Ginny asked.
He nodded in confirmation. "I guess Ron did."
Ginny snorted. "I bet he did," she agreed.
He pecked her lips. "Do you remember what I said?"
Her eyes lit up. "That I am a catch?" she replied cheekily.
Harry laughed. "No, the other thing."
"Yes, I needed to stop pursuing and a good guy would find me." She rested her head on his shoulder.
He squeezed her closer. "And I did."
"It was good advice," she agreed.
He nodded. "That's what best friends are for," he said.
She perked right back up. "Are best friends for making out too?"
He shook his head immediately. "No, you'll have to call the boyfriend for that." He put his phone to his ear. "Sorry, Gin. Have to go. The girlfriend wants to make out with me."
Ginny pulled him to her with a grin. "You're an idiot."
"Your idiot," he replied, his face nearing hers. "Do we make out too much?" he quipped.
"Well, it's my favourite pastime," Ginny responded jokingly.
"Really?" Harry said cockily. "I thought it was–"
Ginny quickly covered his mouth with her hand, her eyes sparkling. "Ron's coming over here."
She lifted her hand. They both watched as he walked up to them.
Ginny sat up straight and looked solemn. "And what brings you to this corner of the garden?"
"I need advice," Ron said. He stood there a bit awkwardly. "I am going on a date."
She grinned. "Ronniekins...!"
"Don't," Ron warned. "I need actual advice."
"Alright," she conceded. "What do you need?"
"You know her pretty well," he admitted, cheeks red.
Ginny shot Harry a far too smug look.
"It's... uhm... It's Hermione."
Ginny promptly poked Harry in the ribs. "Quick, Harry, act surprised!"
Harry shot Ron an apologetic look.
"Hermione doesn't buy the gentlemanly stuff, so don't even bother. Just treat her with respect, like you usually do," Ginny told him honestly.
"If your advice is, treat her no different than usual on a date..." Ron shook his head warily.
Harry raised his eyebrows, looking over at Ginny.
"Oh, I see." Ron huffed. "I came to the wrong people."
Harry decided to help him out. "Hermione genuinely likes you. She thinks you are charming and funny."
Ron's eyes widened. "She does?"
"Yes!" Ginny confirmed.
"Anything else?" Ron asked.
Harry shrugged. "I just went and kissed the girl. It worked out."
"Don't listen to him," Ginny said dismissively. "It's an insane tactic and only worked out because we were in a closet ."
"Gin. If I had just asked you out without kissing you, would you have said yes?" He waited for her reply.
She thought about it. "Uhm. No. Probably not. I wasn't really... vibing with the idea yet."
Harry laughed and turned his attention to Ron again. "She's been checking you out for ages. Just give her your undivided attention for an hour or two. You'll do well."
Ron seemed to have heard enough or had given up and returned to the house.
"And make smart decisions!" she shouted after him. She met Harry's eyes. "One can try, the kids never listen."
"I've been thinking," Harry said. "Because we would need to choose a godparent, right?"
She nodded. "Has to be—"
"—Ron. Yeah," he said.
"Yeah," she agreed. "That feels right."
"If he wants to, of course," Harry added. "He may not want to."
"Are you joking? He's not even going to have to think about it." She picked up her phone. "I need to check for cute ideas to ask him to be her godfather."
Harry watched along for a moment as she scrolled through examples.
"What else did the books say?" Harry asked her.
She put her phone back down. "Too many things."
"Like what?"
"There is just so much information, and so much to decide and I can't... all make it make sense." She shook her head. "There are parenting styles to consider. Diapers, reusable or not? Breastfeeding or not? Is it even manageable with going to class? Could we even afford formula? What about swaddling, and pacifiers and bloody baby shoes!" she let out. "And don't even get me started on birthing plans."
Harry found it entirely endearing. "Well, I've got some terrible news for you."
She took a breath. "What?"
Harry glanced sideways at her with a smile. "I think you're becoming a mum."
Ginny covered her face with her hands. "Am I that bad?"
"No," he said lightly. "You're just trying to figure out the first half of your kid's life in two hours." He patted her knee. "You have six months to figure out most of these questions. You don't have to decide things alone."
"I just... I told myself once summer came around and before we moved, I'd read and learn and..." She looked down. "I am scared."
He nodded. He would be lying if he didn't admit he felt overwhelmed sometimes. "It's a lot. But we still have time, and we will keep learning. Come here." He put his legs up on the swing and pulled her back to him. "And it is okay to mess up. We'll try again. We don't like one type of thing; we switch it up." He rubbed comforting circles on her back. "And she will have her own little personality and she will tell us her preferences too and we will learn together."
"If those books could at least align on their guidelines..." she muttered.
"Probably means there is no right answer," he thought out loud. "What's the deal with the baby shoes?"
"Baby shoes are very cute, but in reality as long as they're not walking they don't need shoes. And they need to learn to walk without shoes because you will mess up the development of their arch and whatever..." she explained.
"That's tragic, they're so cute," he said.
"I know!" she agreed.
"As for things like birthing plans and breastfeeding, that's up to you and I'll be there for whatever you need."
She looked back up. "You have been doing your reading."
He smiled. "Of course." He blew raspberries against her forehead. "That baby isn't even close to being done cooking. We said we'd figure our shit out by then, and we will."
"I'm glad we can move into the apartment soon. I think it will bring me some peace if we are already somewhat settled." She seemed to perk up at the thought.
"I am so glad we decided on that apartment, I think that was the right decision," he said.
She nodded. "As roommates go, you're a huge improvement from Felicia."
When Harry woke up in Ginny's room
, she wasn't beside him. He crawled out of bed and silently walked downstairs in search of her. As soon as he came down the stairs, he could see the light was on the kitchen. He smiled. He had a good guess what he was up to.
He leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed.
Ginny stood at the counter; the pickle jar open in front of her. She took another one out. She looked up and smiled at him and happily munched on her pickle.
"I can't believe we are back on pickles and you didn't tell me." He pushed off the frame and walked to her. He held out his hand. "Give me one."
Ginny's hand ducked into the jar again and handed him one.
"How many have you had?" he asked.
She looked into the jar, shaking it a little to see. "Definitely too many."
They heard a noise, and they looked up.
Mr Weasley entered the kitchen a moment later, squinting slightly at the light. "What are you kids up to?"
"Snacks," Ginny replied, fishing another pickle out of the jar.
"What time is it?" he asked.
Harry glanced at his watch. "2 AM."
Mr Weasley looked at the jar and held his hand out. "Give me that."
Ginny objected as he took the jar from her. With a pout, she ate the rest of her pickle.
Mr Weasley shuffled around the kitchen for a minute or two and then offered her a plate. He had made a sandwich with cheese, copious amounts of mayonnaise and pickles. He handed it to her. "How's that?"
Ginny picked up the sandwich and bit into it. "That is perfect."
Mr Weasley smiled. "If you eat straight pickles, you will get nauseous. You need to level it out a little. Your mum used to eat it all the time when she was pregnant."
Ginny put down the sandwich and hugged him. "Thanks, dad."
Mr Weasley patted her back. Then he wandered back up the stairs silently.
Ginny picked her sandwich back up and took a big bite. "You are going to need to remember what is on this," she said with her mouth full.
He nodded. "I'll put it on the list..."
She swallowed. "You don't have a list," she said in disbelief.
"Sure, I do." He counted on his fingers. "That spaghetti with the tomato and mushroom sauce, blood sausage. The candy but only from the grocery store by the dorms because the others are not the same. And chicken nuggets with sweet-and-sour dip."
"I love you."
He grinned. "Eat your sandwich, I am tired."
"I can take it to bed," she suggested.
He eyed her. "Between the pickles and the mayonnaise... maybe not."
As Ginny finished her sandwich, Harry put the jar of pickles away and drank some water. He turned back around. "Done?"
She finished off the last bite and wiped her hands. "Yes." She walked up to him and took his hand.
He let her guide him back upstairs. He crawled back in bed and she settled down beside him.
"How long do I have before I will be banished by a pregnancy pillow?" he asked.
She giggled. "I think you have a few more weeks. Maybe when we have a bigger bed."
"What I am hearing is that we will finally have the place to ourselves and I'll be at the far end of the bed and you'll be all cozy—"
"Cozy? You think being pregnant is cosy? I will need it just to be comfortable. I can't sleep on my stomach, I am not allowed to sleep on my back... what do you want me to do?"
Harry petted her hair. "There, there."
She pretended to growl at him. "We wouldn't even be living together if it wasn't for Miss Nugget so I guess we have to take the negative sides as well."
"It's not that bad," he said. "And I know what we're doing it for. She's most important."
Ginny cuddled closer to him. "Hold me close while you still can. Enjoy it."
He pulled her against him. "Oh, I am." He nuzzled against her cheek. "We can compromise on pre-sleep cuddles, right?"
"Sure," she answered sleepily.
"Good."
"It is time for football!" George called after dinner. "Harry... for old time's sake."
"We'd ask you to join, but..." Ron told Ginny.
Fred pulled a chair along and set it on the side of their makeshift field in the orchard. The tree trunks would act as goalposts. "She is our referee."
"No kicking in her direction," George said. "Let's all agree on that."
"I'll count deductions if you come too. close," Ginny said.
Harry smiled at her.
"No fraternising with the referee, Potter," Ron said, grabbing the ball out of Harry's hands.
Harry pulled the ball back out of Ron's grip. "Little late for that one, huh, Ron?" He held the ball behind him so Ron could not steal it. "Remind me again. Who handed me off to their sister? And then set up a plot so I'd date her?"
"I'll be on Harry's team today," Fred said. "The man clearly has a bone to pick with you."
Harry winked at her.
Ginny watched as the men kept discussing certain rules and lines. She sighed. "Stop reinventing football and just play, for the love of god."
She watched them for a while, keeping the score, when Harry kicked the ball and it shot right at her. She caught it with her foot.
"Uh-oh," George went.
Harry ran up to her, sweaty, looking apologetic. "Sorry."
"Out of all people..." She shook her head in disappointment.
Harry reached for the ball, but she moved it out of the way with her foot. He bent over to kiss her but she stopped him.
"I am sorry, but you stink right now," she said. She kicked the ball to Ron.
He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and ran back off.
"Minus two for you guys!" she said.
"What?!" Fred said. He gave Harry a little push. "Go bribe her."
She shook her head. "I can't be bribed. And attempting to bribe me will lead to a further deduction of points!"
Harry pouted but then Ron kicked the ball again and they continued playing. Harry and Fred won by one point, despite their deduction.
Harry stopped in front of her. "Do I still smell?"
She could smell it even like this. She wrinkled her nose. "Yes. Pungent really."
"I'll go shower," he said. He waved goodbye to Fred and George and disappeared inside.
"Poor Harry," George commented.
She frowned. "I can't help it!"
"You are going to have to let us take him out on boys' night once in a while," he said. "He is going to need it."
"Don't be so dramatic," she said with a shake of her head.
"We know he likes you," Fred said. "But he can't possibly like you that much."
"You can take him out for boys' night. But at some point, you are going to have to consider calling it a family night." She smiled innocently.
George shook his head. He whispered with a dramatic air. "You ruin everything."
"Yes, I stole Harry from all of you," she said with a nod. "But as a boyfriend, he is a pretty good option don't you think? Someone you know and trust and not some..." She turned to Ron. "What did you call Matthew?"
"A pretentious prick with insecurities taller than Mt. Everest that needs external validation to function on a daily basis."
"Colourful," Fred noted. "Fine. Yes. As a brother-in-law, he'll do."
She nodded in understanding. "You are telling me that just because you know him so well, you feel bad he is stuck with me?"
"You do get it," he said.
When Harry came out again, he walked up to her. "Better?"
"Splendid. Lovely. Perfect," she said.
Harry pulled her into his embrace, hugging her from the back.
"Dear, tell my brothers how much you hate being stuck with me."
"Terrible," he said immediately. "Loathe it. Don't want to." He kissed her cheek.
"You'll definitely need to take him out for boys' night. How else will he survive with me?" Ginny said.
"Sure," Harry said. "Just not December through March."
Fred rolled his eyes. "I'll take it into account."
"First the big furniture and then all the boxes," Ginny said, going over the planning for their move with Harry. "And I'll start with Fred and George on the couch."
Harry nodded. "If we don't want them to booby trap our couch, they do need supervision." He pulled a paper closer. "Gin, I told you we are buying a new bed."
"Why?" she asked.
"Because we are going to need our sleep. And I don't want you to have back pain or something just because we have a rickety bed," he said. "We can do a lot of second-hand things, but not that and not the couch."
"Sure, let me just whip out my coin purse and see how much gold I have in there," she muttered.
"My parents—"
"Harry, we can't do that."
"It's just going to be... a very big birthday present this year. I told them not to, but they couldn't be convinced." Harry scrapped 'bed' in one row and rewrote it in the other. "So we may as well. We'll just go to IKEA, get some meatballs and buy a bed and couch. And whatever knick-knacks you want. Can we agree on that?"
She nodded. "Fine. Just feels like charity."
"Doesn't mean we shouldn't take it," Harry commented. "If you really want, we can pay it back when we start working, and then it's like a loan. But we are talking less than I'd make in a month. They can easily spare it."
Ginny groaned. "I need a job like that."
"Good thing I have a job like that," he said with a smile. "It'll be a difficult year but after that, it will be smooth sailing."
She snorted. "That's for sure. Even if you have a job, I have no clue what I want to do. And we probably should have started looking at daycares yesterday."
Harry looked up in surprise. "Didn't I tell you? There is a daycare at the agency. I can just drop her off before work and my parents can pick them up if we can't make it. And it is essentially free."
"Would I be able to go in? What about the secret stuff I'm not allowed to see?"
Harry smiled. "No, you'd be cleared, unless you're a little criminal."
She smirked. "Of course I am." She looked at the list. "And the car seat should also be new, I guess."
Harry nodded. "Yes, it needs to be safe."
"Agreed." She looked back at the planning. "We need two or more people to assemble the bed. Table shouldn't take too long..." She wiggled the pen between her fingers as she thought. "We don't need more people, right?"
Harry counted on his fingers. "Your parents and my parents. Ron, Fred, George, Sirius... maybe Remus. And us two. That's at least ten people. I think that'll do."
"Ginny!" her mother called. A moment later she appeared in the living room with a box. She put it down on the table.
Ginny stood up to look. "What's that?"
"I was talking to Marianne in the bakery the other day and she said that her daughter still had a box of baby clothes she was planning to get rid of. Her youngest is three now—I don't think they'll go for one more–"
Ginny opened the box and started digging through it while her mum continued talking.
"They had terrible trouble with the second one... wouldn't really sleep at all. So they had all these clothes and you know babies grow out of that in about five minutes... so today I saw Marianne again when she was coming out of the hairdressers and said she had the box at her home..."
Ginny looked over at Harry and shook her head.
"I went over there, had some coffee and picked up the box. Then she told me that the baker's cousin, you know Penny..."
"I don't," Ginny replied.
"Yes, you do! She was caught cheating on her husband with the butcher's son." Molly shook her head.
"Mark?" Harry asked. "He used to babysit me."
"Yes, Mark! So then his wife..."
Ginny tuned out the rest of it to continue looking through the box. She took out a tiny sweater and showed it to Harry.
He took up a shirt and held it up. "Aha!" he said when her mother stopped talking. "Family Harricks goes to Spain," he read off the shirt. "Love it."
Ginny snorted. "Maybe not that one."
"Anything you don't like we can just take to someone else or to the thrift store, just sort through it this week," her mother said.
"Thanks, mum," Ginny said, folding the sweater back into the box.
Her mother walked on into the kitchen.
Harry picked up a onesie. "This should be about newborn size." He held it against her stomach.
"That is enormous and it's terrifying," she said. "That can't fit in there!"
"Maybe diagonally," he suggested, twisting the onesie a little. "Maybe not."
"You are not helping," she commented with a pout.
He grinned at her. "It will be okay."
She shook her head slowly. "You don't know that."
"Yes, I do. The moment she thinks she is out of space, she will vacate the premises," Harry said. He pulled her closer and kissed her temple. "And if she doesn't, I will tell her to get her ass out of there."
"I don't think that is a great way to set the tone for the rest of her life," Ginny said.
He shrugged. "I'll come up with something by then."
Ginny looked up as Harry walked back out of the house. He had gone inside to check the assessment of his boot camp, but he was wearing a rather bewildered expression.
"Are you okay, sweetheart?" she asked.
He sat down at the table too and spoke slowly. "You know I had just taken out my laptop to check quickly. And your mum walked by..."
"Yeah?"
"And she looked at my laptop in my lap and said it's bad for my junk..." He looked mortified as he shook his head. "I am not going to recover from that one soon."
Ginny bit back a smile. "Aha."
He met her eyes. "I didn't know what to say! Clearly my junk works fine!"
She straightened her face. "I am sad I didn't get to see your face as she said it."
He let out a chuckle. "Pure terror is what you would have seen," he said with a nod. "Hearing that from my mum is one thing, but from yours!" He breathed out. "Make sure your junk is all working for my daughter! Who is already pregnant!"
She patted his arm. "If you must know, Bill and Fleur had a lot of trouble conceiving. I think it worries my mum. The first one took a while and there is no second one on the way yet to my knowledge."
Harry frowned. "Surely between seven kids, there will be enough grandkids eventually?"
She shrugged. "I would think so too."
"I can imagine it may have stung a little that we..."
"Bill simply seemed happy for me. I am not sure about Fleur, we aren't the best of friends," she told him.
Harry nodded. "Most of you don't seem to like her a lot."
"She is French. She basically whisked our brother away to France. She always treats me like a child. I don't appreciate that. And then she thinks France is better in everything, food, language... And to top it all off, my parents never get to see their first grandchild." She grimaced. "I think that was the final straw for my mum, really."
He raised his eyebrows. "So just by staying in the country, I am gaining points over Fleur, right?"
Ginny nodded. "If we just pop by once a month, let her hold her grandbaby for an hour, she would be over the moon."
Ginny woke up with a start, sitting up, coated in cold sweat. The abrupt movement made Harry wake up too.
"Gin?" he asked.
Her heart was pounding, and she was trying to figure out which part of the nightmare had been real and what was not. Her hand slid over her small bump, her other hand reaching out to Harry.
Harry moved swiftly. He sat up and pulled her close. "You're fine," he told her. He pressed a kiss against her hair.
"I dreamt we were in a car on a road trip. Baby nugget in her car seat and then there was an accident..." She took a deep breath. "I was in pain but neither of you were moving and I didn't know–I..."
"You saw her?" he asked softly. "What did she look like?"
"She had your black hair, curled a bit on the side and your lips... cute little button nose... teeny tiny hands..."
Harry pressed another kiss against her skin. "She sounds adorable."
"She was," she said with a sigh. "If only I could get the image out of my head when she wasn't reacting."
Harry pulled Ginny up. "Come on."
Ginny didn't object. The change of scenery was welcome. She followed him silently until they were on the steps of the back door. He sat down on the top step and guided her to sit between his legs on the step below. She closed her eyes, enjoying the soft breeze on her skin as Harry's arms wrapped around her.
"I swear it's just the hormones, I am usually not this..."
He kissed her cheek. "It'll pass." His hand caressed her side. "I wish I could make it better."
She leaned against him. "You are."
His lips tracked along her skin to her neck. She pulled his arms more around her.
"When you start feeling kicks, you need to tell me," Harry said.
She nodded. "Of course. Nothing yet, as far as I can tell."
"I looked at the castle you wanted to visit next week," he said softly. "It looks fun. They have a historic city centre we can visit as well."
She rested her head against him, her hand landing on his thigh beside her. "And no serious discussions... just chill and have fun."
Harry nodded in agreement. Ginny relaxed, staring up at the stars. It was quiet and peaceful, there were only far-off sounds of traffic. Harry continued his path along her jaw and neck with his lips. Ginny was quite sure he wasn't even fully aware he was doing it, he just continued absent-mindedly placing kisses along easy-to-reach skin.
Ginny's eyes closed as she enjoyed the sensation. She would have let him continue for longer if she wasn't starting to want more. As Harry placed on the nape of her neck, a pleasant shiver went down her spine.
She breathed out. "Let's go back upstairs."
"Are you getting sleepy again?" he asked obliviously.
"No."
His nose pressed against her. "Oh."
"What did you expect when you keep tracing your lips across my skin?" she asked, her hand running up his thigh softly.
"I wasn't doing it consciously." His arm swooped around her and squeezed her.
"I know." She sighed. "That's what makes it so sexy."
"That makes it incredibly difficult to repeat on purpose," he mumbled.
She nodded and stepped out of his arms, righting herself. She turned around to him.
"After you, Weasley." He stepped aside to let her through.
She walked into the house and halfway up the stairs when Harry's arm came around her and his lips came to her neck.
"Totally not on purpose," Harry whispered against her ear. "Sexy, huh?"
The smallest chuckle escaped her throat, and she slapped her hand in front of her mouth. She turned to him with a warning expression, while simultaneously silently laughing; it wasn't very convincing.
He attacked her again on the landing right outside her bedroom. She let out an amused giggle as Harry placed her lips against her skin with feigned innocence.
"Harry," she let out in a whisper, shaking her head in amusement.
"What?" he replied equally softly as he stepped back from her.
Ron's door opened. They both looked up. Her brother's eyes were barely open as he looked at them.
Ginny pushed Harry into her room. "I had a nightmare," she informed Ron in a carrying whisper.
Ron sighed, shook his head warily and then the door closed again. Ginny quickly turned around and entered her room, closing the door behind her. She took in the sight. There was something entirely too attractive about Harry standing half-naked in the middle of her room in the moonlight.
"Ron, can you come in here?" Ginny asked. Harry handed her the wrapped gift. They both stood waiting for Ron.
Her brother stepped into her room a moment later, looking expectantly. "Yeah?"
She giddily handed him the gift.
Ron looked up warily. "It's not my birthday, is it?" he asked as he started tearing it open.
"No," Harry said. "Just open it and look."
Ginny threw an excited glance at Harry and then watched Ron, eagerly awaiting his reaction.
Ron opened the gift and took out a shirt. He read it aloud. "Only the best uncles get promoted to godfather." He looked at them, jaw dropped.
"We would like you to be godfather to our little baby nugget," Ginny said.
Ron smiled widely. "No, for real?"
"Yes," Harry confirmed. "We didn't even have to discuss it—we just knew it had to be you."
"You can of course say no—" Ginny started.
"Say no? Are you nuts, this is great." He wrapped Ginny in a hug. "Of course, I want to be godfather to your little crotch goblin."
"It's only right," Harry said. "Without you, none of this would have happened."
Ron released Ginny and looked at him. "I can't tell if this is a reward or a punishment."
Harry smiled. "Definitely both."
Ron shrugged. "Fine, I'll take it." He pulled the shirt over his head. "I am getting bragging rights." He looked at Ginny. "I can already wear this, right? Or is it still a secret?"
Ginny shook her head. "Unless you want to keep it a secret."
"No, I am going to show this off," Ron said.
"Let me take a picture of you two." He stepped back and took out his phone.
Ron posed with his shirt on, pointing excitedly at Ginny's belly. Harry snapped the photo.
"I'll send it to the group chat," Harry said.
Babygate and the gang
HARRY:
(sent photo)
NEVILLE:
Congrats, Ron!
DEAN:
Congrats, dude!
RON:
Be right back annoying the brothers
Ginny's eyes widened. "Don't put it in the family group chat, Percy still doesn't know."
Ron snorted. "Right, I forgot. Fine, I'll just rub it in Fred and George's faces then."
Harry looked over Ron's shoulder.
FroGGy
RON:
(sent photo)
confirmed I am the favourite brother
FRED :
oh the betrayal
GEORGE :
Godfather is one thing
but that shirt
Ginny, what did we ever do to you?
GINNY :
This was decided between Harry and I
FRED :
Harry, what's your problem with us?
Your old teammates, do we mean nothing to you?
RON :
He said perhaps next kid
GEORGE :
Swear it
GINNY :
Absolutely not
[Harry was added to 'FRoGGy']
GEORGE :
Swear it, Harry
HARRY :
Look
We will talk offline
[Group chat name was updated to 'Hairy FRoGGy']
HARRY :
How about no
we won't talk offline after all
(Yes we will, I'll talk to you later)
GEORGE :
Your name doesn't fit in with the rest
[Group chat name was updated to 'HunGry FRoG']
GEORGE :
we may need to workshop it a little
Harry's hands pulled on the button of her shorts.
"Come on, Harry, you can do it," she encouraged him, her hand on his arm to steady herself.
"Suck your stomach in a little," he commented with a smile.
She gasped. "I am!"
He gave up and looked at her. "Sorry. You'll need to wear another pair of shorts."
"Fine." She sighed, looking down at the button. "Nugget is getting too big."
"Nugget is growing well," Harry replied, placing a kiss against her forehead.
Ginny waved him off dismissively, ducking into her closet for something else to wear.
"You're also stressed, right," Harry asked. "Putting our parents together?"
She stood back and looked at him, holding a different pair of shorts. She nodded. "Yeah. My mother is going to throw me under the bus in under five minutes."
"What for?" Harry asked.
Ginny cocked her head. "Anything I've ever done my mum thinks your parents care about, like getting you detention."
"That was years ago," he argued, his brows furrowing.
Ginny shrugged. "My mum thinks I am a bad influence on you."
Harry laughed. "No clue where she got that idea."
She crossed her arms and walked up to him. "You just have convinced everyone you're a little angel. My parents think so, and you are an only child so of course your parents think you can do no wrong..." She poked his stomach. " I know that's not true."
"We'll just go 'grandbaby' every time we get into dangerous territory," Harry suggested.