Chapter 24 - Telling the mother
Draco, Harry, and Cassie, went to the Burrow by floo powder, arriving in the middle of the living room with a huge cloud of ashes.
Draco cleaned Cassie's dirty face, and clothes, and then did the same with himself. Only after he felt good with his appearance, did he look to the house where he had just arrived. The living room was a small cosy place, with two couches and two armchairs, adorned with hand knitted shawls of several colours. This was a real home… Ginny was so lucky of having grown up in such a warm and loving place…
"Mrs. Weasley?" Harry called, from his right side.
"Harry?!" a female voice called from a nearby room, before a red-headed woman came into the living room, smiling widely. "Harry, darling! I haven't seen you for so long! You don't come here as much as you used to…"
"I know, Mrs. Weasley, I'm sorry! I've missed you all, as well," Harry admitted, loving the feel of the tight embrace the woman had on him.
"And, who are these people?" she asked, with a curious smile. "And such a lovely girl!"
"I am Draco Malfoy, Mrs. Weasley, and this is Cassandra Malfoy, my sister," Draco said in a soft voice, watching her smiling face turn into one of shock.
"A Malfoy?" she gasped. "What brings you here?"
"I need to see your daughter, if you don't mind, of course. I have something very important to tell her…" he asked, with a sad face.
"Are you the reason why she's acting so differently?" Mrs. Weasley asked, placing her hands on her hips on a furious way.
"Yes, I am…" Draco admitted, lowering his head, to look at his shoes.
"Well, then we need to talk before I decide if you can or can not go see her," Mrs. Weasley stated, pointing to a couch near him. As soon as they all sat to start talking, little Cassie jumped from Draco's arms, and walked to Mrs. Weasley.
"Winny?" the girl called, opening her arms, waiting to be held. Ginny's mother smiled at the little girl, and sat her on her lap.
"You will see Ginny really soon, darling! Hold on a little!" she whispered. "So, tell me all!"
"Mrs. Weasley, Ginny and I have been roommates for the last months, and we became very close, especially since Cassie was found, and Ginny saved her from certain death… Somehow, I've done something to infuriate your daughter, and she backed away from Cassie and me… Three weeks ago, I found out that I would lose my sister if I didn't adopt her, and to be able to adopt her, I must be married, so I asked Ginny to marry me… She said no," Draco explained, hiding some private facts. "I got so mad that I told her I didn't want to see her ever again, and that I wanted her away from Cassie… I was the stupidest man to ever walk on this earth!"
"My Ginny would never marry someone she doesn't love, Mr. Malfoy. You were too harsh, telling her those things," Mrs. Weasley said, quietly. "But, I know my daughter, and she's not easy, either. I agree with you… You two must talk."
"Thank you…" Draco said, his face opening into a beautiful happy smile.
"But first, tell me something: Do you love my daughter?" she asked, softly.
"Yes, I do… With every bit of my heart!" he said, serious. "All I want his to see her happy… And if that's with me and Cassie, then I'll be a very happy man!"
"Good! She has been so sad all this time… She doesn't eat, she doesn't smile like she used to, and she stays in her bedroom all day long… Really, it was breaking my heart seeing her like that, and not being able to know what was happening! Please, make my daughter smile again…" the lady begged, rising from her sit, giving Cassie to Harry. "I'm going to call her down, and tell her Harry is here to see her. Otherwise, she won't come down…"
Soon, soft steps descended the narrow staircase, and Ginny's form came into the room. She looked really pale, her body was a little thinner, and she looked really unhappy. Seeing her like this, made Draco feel even guiltier for telling her those awful things…
"Harry, you brought Cassie?" Ginny screamed with happiness, and ran to Harry, taking the little girl from his arms, hugging her tight against her body. "Oh, I've missed you so much, sweetie! How's Draco? Have you taken good care of him?"
"WINNY!" the girl screamed, enthusiastically, never stopping to recover her breath. It was clear that both girls were happy to be together again… Only a fool like him, to try and separate them!
"Hello Ginny!" he said, behind her, causing her to turn quickly to face him.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, hurt all over her face and voice.
"We need to talk… Can we?" he asked, with a sad smile.
"I think there's nothing left for us to say… If you thought that by bringing Cassie, I would do anything you wanted me to do, then you're wrong!" she said, although she kept a tight hold on the little child, as if afraid that Draco would take Cassie away from her.
"Ginny, I think you should hear what Mr. Malfoy has to say…" Mrs. Weasley said, with a commanding tone. "Give me Cassie… Harry, Cassie and I are going to bake a cake!"
While the three figures left the living room, Ginny felt herself become even tenser.
"Please, say what you have to say and leave my house and my life!" she said harshly, while she sat on an armchair.
Chapter 25 - Lover Confessions
"Ginny, I came here to say I'm sorry for the way I behaved that day… I was very upset, furious actually, and I wasn't thinking properly…" Draco said, pacing the room, afraid to look at her face, afraid of reading the hate in her eyes.
"Why were you upset?" she asked, playing with one pillow, not looking at him. He looked so sad and nervous, that if she looked at him, she would run into his arms and kiss him senseless, forgetting what happened… And she didn't want that, right now. She needed answers, first…
"Because I proposed and you refused…" he whispered, locking his gaze with hers, when she looked up at him, her eyes full of surprise.
"You proposed? I only heard you saying you needed a mother for Cassie, and a wife for yourself! I never heard a proposal to get married! And if you are involved with Pansy, why should you propose to me?" she said, sounding furious.
"I'm not involved with Pansy!" he yelled, outraged with her conclusions.
"Oh, really! So you snog every single woman you know, in your living room? That's good to know…" she spat sarcastically.
"You are the only one to blame, because I've snogged her! If you hadn't ran away from me after we slept together, I wouldn't have felt frustrated, and wouldn't have snogged Pansy!" he replied, starting to lose his calmness.
"Don't you dare blame me on that! That night, when we went to that restaurant and met her, I asked you what she was to you… I ask you the same right now! What was she to you in the past, and what is she in the present?" Ginny asked, standing up, and throwing the pillow to the floor furiously.
"You want to know the whole rotten truth? We were sex-buddies! During those two years at Auror training, I couldn't get decent time to meet girls, so I always went to Pansy, and release my tension… A man needs to have sex once in a while, you know!" he replied with a bored smirk.
"I sure do... That happened a few weeks ago…" Ginny whispered sadly. "What is she now?"
"She's nothing, nada, rien, niech!" he replied, taking a step closer to Ginny. "Why did you run away from me, after we've shared something so beautiful? That was not a one night stand, as you stated!"
"Because I'm not the kind of person to sleep with someone when love is not involved! I made a mistake that day, by sleeping with you, and now I'm sorry I did it!" she replied, covering her face with her hands, to stop him from seeing her pained expression.
"What if there was love?" he asked softly, his hands lowering her own, from her face. "What if it wasn't a mistake at all?"
"It wouldn't be a mutual love…" she replied, trying to take her hands from his hold, without succeeding. "There would always be one loving and the other just feeling lust and desire…"
"Are you sure?" he asked her, approaching her faces, but she would still not look at him in the eye. "Please, Ginny, look at me when I'm declaring my love to you!"
Ginny sobbed when she heard his soft voice, and looked at him, as tears ran through her face. Not tears of sadness… Tears of hope, tears of happiness, tears of love…
"I love you, you damn Weasel! You've made me feel something I've never felt in my entire life, and now you're trying to deny something beautiful for both of us! Correction, to the three of us! Please, can you forgive me the hurt I've put you through?"
"Correction, the four of us! How could I not forgive the man I love and the father of our child?" Ginny smiled, weakly, wiping the tears from her face.
"Does that mean you're willing to be Cassie's mother? She will be our child?" he asked, full of hope, and smiling silly, not having noticed her mention of four people.
"Yes… She will be our first child! Do you think she will like to have a baby brother or sister?" Ginny asked with a glint in her eyes, as if she knew something he did not know.
"What do you mean? Are you saying that… you're pregnant?" he asked, surprised, reaching down to touch her flat stomach.
"That's right…" she said, smiling happily, as Draco held her tight in a passionate kiss, full of love, longing and hope. "Imagine! A Healer not taking precautions on her first time having sex! The Hospital should fire me!"
Draco laughed along with her, feeling as if he were floating, with so much happiness.
"I love you so much, Ginny! I'm sorry for all the hurt I've put you through! All I want is to be with you, and make you happy… That's all I want!" he confessed, whispering in her ear.
"I forgive you, if you'll forgive me for my behaviour! And… I love you too, Malfoy!" she laughed, kissing him again.
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Ok, one more chappie to go and then starts the SEQUEL!!!
Love, Carina