Supreme thanks to Rainpuddle13 for the wonderful beta.
Chapter 5
Ginny watched as Draco continued drinking his tea and reading the paper. The pounding had immobilized her, yet he seemed completely unaffected. "Would you get that? It's your family after all."
She turned her wide brown eyes to study him, taken back by his tone. One would think it was his Slytherin mates at the door. "Why aren't you worried about this?"
"I think the question should be, why are you worried about them?"
"They're my brothers—"
"I'll be the one they pound, Weasley, not you." He didn't remove his eyes from the paper as he turned the page. The Falcons had won again, putting them in front of Puddlemere by half a game. "Your brothers won't hurt you, they'll just want to know what you were thinking. I expect they'll attempt to beat me to a bloody pulp."
His wife rolled her eyes. "They may not like you, but they're not that uncivilized."
This did cause him to look up at her, skeptically. "The one immediately reaches for his wand every time he sees me, Gin. Even if we're just passing each other at the Ministry."
"Which one? Ron?"
"No, the pillock and I avoid each other like the plague. He's too easy to rouse - there's no fun in it anymore. Although, I do expect he'll be upset over our wedding. It's the one… Preeny?"
"Percy," Ginny clarified. "His name is Percy. Draco, you were at Hogwarts together for three years."
"He had red hair and wore second-hand robes. Not something I liked at Hogwarts."
"I had red hair and wore second-hand robes, Malfoy. You certainly liked me. Care to explain why?"
"Easy," he smirked. "You had tits. Very nice tits."
"Ginny!" her brothers shouted from outside.
However, the redhead was too shocked by Draco's admission to pay attention to her brothers' pleas. "You…"
"Are we going to discuss your assets or decide what to do about your dozen brothers?"
"Why do my brothers even know where you live, Malfoy?" she retorted. "Have them over for tea often?"
He looked up at the ceiling and cursed. She was so frustrating! "Let's see: two of them work at the Ministry, where I work, one of them works at Gringotts, where I have several accounts, and then there's your father—who knows bloody everything. What do you think?"
"I would have thought your home would be unplottable!" Ginny stood up and started towards the door, but stopped when the banging started again. Perhaps she'd let them take all of their frustration out on the door, and then let them in.
"That's the trouble with living in a flat in the middle of a nowhere: you don't really think about uninvited guests."
"Stop." Ginny turned to face him, trying to ignore the renewed pounding at the door. "We'll have to let them in. I know my brothers and they won't leave until they see me. They'll break down the door first."
"Bunch of barbarians, then?"
"They're my brothers!" she exclaimed. "We'll just… We're in this together, okay? No matter what they say or how badly they try to hurt you, I won't go with them. I won't leave you." Her eyes sought his out as she tried to reassure him. As long as they were married, they were partners. She couldn't abandon him, even though he sometimes deserved it.
Draco studied her for a moment from his position on the couch, seemingly trying to discern if she was sincere or not. Finally, he stood and nodded. "Thank you. But if they start throwing curses, I expect you to hex them, brothers or not."
He was standing directly beside her, holding her hand and hopefully providing her with extra courage, when she opened the door. On the other side he saw four very angry brothers and two who looked rather bored with the whole situation. They would be his allies, Draco decided.
"Ginny!" Ron shouted. The youngest Weasley brother stepped forward and wrapped his sister in a hug. She patted him awkwardly on the back with one hand. "You're okay!"
"Of course, I'm okay." The redheaded woman laughed softly. "What did you expect?"
Ron glared at Draco over her shoulder. "I didn't know what to expect."
Ginny stepped back toward Draco. Her husband, to reassure her, squeezed her hand tightly. She seemed to be doing fine so far. "I got married, Ron, not hit by a train. I'm fine."
"You're obviously not fine, if you're married to him," Percy spoke for the first time. "We're here to take you home."
The redhead felt Draco stiffen beside her. She idly wondered if Percy really disliked her husband so much. She forced a smile on her face and moved to the side so her family could enter. "Would you like to come in? We were just having breakfast. There's enough for everyone."
The twins, Ron, and Percy all pushed their way through the door. Bill and Charlie followed behind, silently. Ginny smiled warmly at Charlie who looked apologetic. "We didn't come for breakfast, Gin. Get your things, we're leaving."
The young woman turned to look up at Ron. Of all of her brothers, Ron was the one she hated letting down the most. But today, she didn't have a choice. "I'm not leaving."
Ron looked from Ginny to Draco, his blue eyes hardened. "Yes, you are. You're coming back to the Burrow with us. So we can talk about this."
Ginny moved, forcing Ron to follow her with his eyes. She wanted to be sure she had their attention. If she could keep them focused, then perhaps they would let Draco be. "I'm not leaving, Ron. Draco and I live here together and I won't allow you to barge in and start giving orders."
"Together?" Percy questioned. "You haven't lived here twelve hours, Ginevra! Unless—is there something you've been hiding from us?"
She grit her teeth and ignored him. "You can't force me to leave my own home. If this were my flat in London, you'd want to sit down and talk rationally." She tugged on Draco's arm, leading him the sofa. They sat and she motioned for her brothers to sit where they could. "If you want to talk about this, we can. Anything you want to eat or drink is here, there's plenty of breakfast for everyone. Just be clear that I'm not leaving with you."
"Ginny, you don't know what you're saying." That was Fred.
"Yeah, Malfoy's probably got you under an Imperius, or something." And George.
Their sister negated this with a shake of her head. "I'm here because I want to be. Draco and I are married now."
"Gin—" Percy.
"I love you all for being here, but you don't need to be."
"But—" Fred.
"I'm fine," she insisted.
"You can't be—" George.
Draco put a hand on the small of her back. He needed the contact as much as she did. "I want to be with him," Ginny continued. She was so focused on making her brothers believe her, she almost missed the way Draco's hand stilled against her back. Why would he react like that? Her mind tried to wrap around it just when Ron started to speak again.
"What about the baby?" he asked.
"I'm not pregnant, Ron." Ginny could feel the flush cover her cheeks. This was the one thing she didn't want to talk about.
In his hand he held that morning's Daily Prophet. "According to this, you are."
Her mind was working overtime to develop an intelligent reply. Nothing short of a negative pregnancy test would convince them completely. "Rita Skeeter wrote that article, proving once again she knows nothing. I'm not pregnant."
"How do we know?" Charlie asked. It was the first time either of her oldest brothers had said anything. "Would you tell us if you were?"
Ginny turned to the two of them and gave them a weak smile. "Charlie, Bill, I wouldn't lie to you. Not about this. I didn't marry Draco because I'm pregnant, I promise. I married him because I wanted to."
"You love him then?" Bill questioned.
If she hadn't just promised to not lie to them, she would have told Bill she was in love with Draco. As it stood, she wasn't entirely sure what her feelings for her husband were. She just needed more time to work them out. "I'm exactly where I want to be," Ginny finally answered.
Those were apparently the magic words, as Bill and Charlie took charge. A few moments later, all six of the men were outside the flat and preparing to Apparate home. Percy, Fred, George, and Ron were still protesting, but the two oldest were no longer listening. They both felt this trip would be pointless, but followed along to make sure Malfoy didn't get himself beat to a bloody pulp. Ron was still adamant that Ginny come with them, but she wouldn't be swayed. Charlie stayed outside to make sure they all left and Bill stepped back inside. He closed the door and turned to face his sister and her husband. "Ginny…"
His sister held up a hand, stopping whatever he might have said. "It's fine. If you hadn't come looking for me, I might have thought you didn't care."
"Never," Bill promised. His eyes shifted from his sister to his new brother-in-law. Taking a step forward, the oldest Weasley extended his hand. "Welcome to the family, then?"
Draco accepted the extended hand with a nod. He was still a bit surprised no one had drawn a wand on him. The Malfoy heir was rather impressed by his new wife and her diplomatic skills.
"You'll be at dinner next week, right?"
"We'll be there," Ginny promised. "Thank you, Bill. Thank Charlie, too."
Bill kissed his sister on the forehead before turning and leaving. Ginny and Draco stood, listening to the six distinct pops of Apparation. When the last one was counted, she turned to face her husband. Ginny gave him a small smile. "That could have been a lot worse."
Draco nodded in agreement. At the moment he was a bit overwhelmed by what she was making him feel. The blond watched, mesmerized, as his hand reached up to push her hair from her face. He traced the back of his fingers across the soft skin of her cheek. His gray eyes searched her face, looking outside of himself for answers. Ginny couldn't move, too wrapped up in the man in front of her. His fingers clasped her chin and Draco took a step forward. He was no longer in control of what was happening. His want for her had taken over. Draco was completely depending on Ginny to stop him. At that moment, she was immobilized. When he finally closed the distance between them, Ginny sighed contentedly. She merely wrapped her arms around him and kissed him back.
Chapter 5
Ginny watched as Draco continued drinking his tea and reading the paper. The pounding had immobilized her, yet he seemed completely unaffected. "Would you get that? It's your family after all."
She turned her wide brown eyes to study him, taken back by his tone. One would think it was his Slytherin mates at the door. "Why aren't you worried about this?"
"I think the question should be, why are you worried about them?"
"They're my brothers—"
"I'll be the one they pound, Weasley, not you." He didn't remove his eyes from the paper as he turned the page. The Falcons had won again, putting them in front of Puddlemere by half a game. "Your brothers won't hurt you, they'll just want to know what you were thinking. I expect they'll attempt to beat me to a bloody pulp."
His wife rolled her eyes. "They may not like you, but they're not that uncivilized."
This did cause him to look up at her, skeptically. "The one immediately reaches for his wand every time he sees me, Gin. Even if we're just passing each other at the Ministry."
"Which one? Ron?"
"No, the pillock and I avoid each other like the plague. He's too easy to rouse - there's no fun in it anymore. Although, I do expect he'll be upset over our wedding. It's the one… Preeny?"
"Percy," Ginny clarified. "His name is Percy. Draco, you were at Hogwarts together for three years."
"He had red hair and wore second-hand robes. Not something I liked at Hogwarts."
"I had red hair and wore second-hand robes, Malfoy. You certainly liked me. Care to explain why?"
"Easy," he smirked. "You had tits. Very nice tits."
"Ginny!" her brothers shouted from outside.
However, the redhead was too shocked by Draco's admission to pay attention to her brothers' pleas. "You…"
"Are we going to discuss your assets or decide what to do about your dozen brothers?"
"Why do my brothers even know where you live, Malfoy?" she retorted. "Have them over for tea often?"
He looked up at the ceiling and cursed. She was so frustrating! "Let's see: two of them work at the Ministry, where I work, one of them works at Gringotts, where I have several accounts, and then there's your father—who knows bloody everything. What do you think?"
"I would have thought your home would be unplottable!" Ginny stood up and started towards the door, but stopped when the banging started again. Perhaps she'd let them take all of their frustration out on the door, and then let them in.
"That's the trouble with living in a flat in the middle of a nowhere: you don't really think about uninvited guests."
"Stop." Ginny turned to face him, trying to ignore the renewed pounding at the door. "We'll have to let them in. I know my brothers and they won't leave until they see me. They'll break down the door first."
"Bunch of barbarians, then?"
"They're my brothers!" she exclaimed. "We'll just… We're in this together, okay? No matter what they say or how badly they try to hurt you, I won't go with them. I won't leave you." Her eyes sought his out as she tried to reassure him. As long as they were married, they were partners. She couldn't abandon him, even though he sometimes deserved it.
Draco studied her for a moment from his position on the couch, seemingly trying to discern if she was sincere or not. Finally, he stood and nodded. "Thank you. But if they start throwing curses, I expect you to hex them, brothers or not."
He was standing directly beside her, holding her hand and hopefully providing her with extra courage, when she opened the door. On the other side he saw four very angry brothers and two who looked rather bored with the whole situation. They would be his allies, Draco decided.
"Ginny!" Ron shouted. The youngest Weasley brother stepped forward and wrapped his sister in a hug. She patted him awkwardly on the back with one hand. "You're okay!"
"Of course, I'm okay." The redheaded woman laughed softly. "What did you expect?"
Ron glared at Draco over her shoulder. "I didn't know what to expect."
Ginny stepped back toward Draco. Her husband, to reassure her, squeezed her hand tightly. She seemed to be doing fine so far. "I got married, Ron, not hit by a train. I'm fine."
"You're obviously not fine, if you're married to him," Percy spoke for the first time. "We're here to take you home."
The redhead felt Draco stiffen beside her. She idly wondered if Percy really disliked her husband so much. She forced a smile on her face and moved to the side so her family could enter. "Would you like to come in? We were just having breakfast. There's enough for everyone."
The twins, Ron, and Percy all pushed their way through the door. Bill and Charlie followed behind, silently. Ginny smiled warmly at Charlie who looked apologetic. "We didn't come for breakfast, Gin. Get your things, we're leaving."
The young woman turned to look up at Ron. Of all of her brothers, Ron was the one she hated letting down the most. But today, she didn't have a choice. "I'm not leaving."
Ron looked from Ginny to Draco, his blue eyes hardened. "Yes, you are. You're coming back to the Burrow with us. So we can talk about this."
Ginny moved, forcing Ron to follow her with his eyes. She wanted to be sure she had their attention. If she could keep them focused, then perhaps they would let Draco be. "I'm not leaving, Ron. Draco and I live here together and I won't allow you to barge in and start giving orders."
"Together?" Percy questioned. "You haven't lived here twelve hours, Ginevra! Unless—is there something you've been hiding from us?"
She grit her teeth and ignored him. "You can't force me to leave my own home. If this were my flat in London, you'd want to sit down and talk rationally." She tugged on Draco's arm, leading him the sofa. They sat and she motioned for her brothers to sit where they could. "If you want to talk about this, we can. Anything you want to eat or drink is here, there's plenty of breakfast for everyone. Just be clear that I'm not leaving with you."
"Ginny, you don't know what you're saying." That was Fred.
"Yeah, Malfoy's probably got you under an Imperius, or something." And George.
Their sister negated this with a shake of her head. "I'm here because I want to be. Draco and I are married now."
"Gin—" Percy.
"I love you all for being here, but you don't need to be."
"But—" Fred.
"I'm fine," she insisted.
"You can't be—" George.
Draco put a hand on the small of her back. He needed the contact as much as she did. "I want to be with him," Ginny continued. She was so focused on making her brothers believe her, she almost missed the way Draco's hand stilled against her back. Why would he react like that? Her mind tried to wrap around it just when Ron started to speak again.
"What about the baby?" he asked.
"I'm not pregnant, Ron." Ginny could feel the flush cover her cheeks. This was the one thing she didn't want to talk about.
In his hand he held that morning's Daily Prophet. "According to this, you are."
Her mind was working overtime to develop an intelligent reply. Nothing short of a negative pregnancy test would convince them completely. "Rita Skeeter wrote that article, proving once again she knows nothing. I'm not pregnant."
"How do we know?" Charlie asked. It was the first time either of her oldest brothers had said anything. "Would you tell us if you were?"
Ginny turned to the two of them and gave them a weak smile. "Charlie, Bill, I wouldn't lie to you. Not about this. I didn't marry Draco because I'm pregnant, I promise. I married him because I wanted to."
"You love him then?" Bill questioned.
If she hadn't just promised to not lie to them, she would have told Bill she was in love with Draco. As it stood, she wasn't entirely sure what her feelings for her husband were. She just needed more time to work them out. "I'm exactly where I want to be," Ginny finally answered.
Those were apparently the magic words, as Bill and Charlie took charge. A few moments later, all six of the men were outside the flat and preparing to Apparate home. Percy, Fred, George, and Ron were still protesting, but the two oldest were no longer listening. They both felt this trip would be pointless, but followed along to make sure Malfoy didn't get himself beat to a bloody pulp. Ron was still adamant that Ginny come with them, but she wouldn't be swayed. Charlie stayed outside to make sure they all left and Bill stepped back inside. He closed the door and turned to face his sister and her husband. "Ginny…"
His sister held up a hand, stopping whatever he might have said. "It's fine. If you hadn't come looking for me, I might have thought you didn't care."
"Never," Bill promised. His eyes shifted from his sister to his new brother-in-law. Taking a step forward, the oldest Weasley extended his hand. "Welcome to the family, then?"
Draco accepted the extended hand with a nod. He was still a bit surprised no one had drawn a wand on him. The Malfoy heir was rather impressed by his new wife and her diplomatic skills.
"You'll be at dinner next week, right?"
"We'll be there," Ginny promised. "Thank you, Bill. Thank Charlie, too."
Bill kissed his sister on the forehead before turning and leaving. Ginny and Draco stood, listening to the six distinct pops of Apparation. When the last one was counted, she turned to face her husband. Ginny gave him a small smile. "That could have been a lot worse."
Draco nodded in agreement. At the moment he was a bit overwhelmed by what she was making him feel. The blond watched, mesmerized, as his hand reached up to push her hair from her face. He traced the back of his fingers across the soft skin of her cheek. His gray eyes searched her face, looking outside of himself for answers. Ginny couldn't move, too wrapped up in the man in front of her. His fingers clasped her chin and Draco took a step forward. He was no longer in control of what was happening. His want for her had taken over. Draco was completely depending on Ginny to stop him. At that moment, she was immobilized. When he finally closed the distance between them, Ginny sighed contentedly. She merely wrapped her arms around him and kissed him back.
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