Chapter 7 - Love is everything
The next morning Ginevra went to breakfast with tired eyes and slight apprehension in her movements. After her behaviour the previous night and the shared kiss the night previous that one had made it impossible for her to sleep. Her mind kept on remembering both situations and usually slight shivers down her spine accompanied those memories, although she had no idea why… Probably it would be best to have a small conversation with Mrs. Potter.
Both the King and the Queen were already having breakfast when Ginevra arrived at the dining room, but the Prince was nowhere in sight, much to both her concern and relief. Was the small colt healthy? Was Luar faring well after giving birth? Was the Prince feeling well after spending the night out there in the cold? Unconsciously her thoughts drifted back to the Prince, but she forced those thoughts away from her mind and sat down for breakfast.
Queen Narcissa and King Lucius were eating in silence, much like the previous day, but this time there were small smiles on their faces… They were relieved for Prince Draco's success, for sure, and maybe for some success of their own? Best not think about it…
"Ginevra, dear, have you heard? The colt is born and it's healthy… Draco is so happy. I haven't seen him smiling that much since we gave him his first broom." The queen announced proudly, making Ginevra smile as well, happy to see her Queen so relaxed and joyous in the presence of her husband.
"Yes, milady, I already knew… It's wonderful to know that Prince Draco succeeded. He'll be a wonderful king when the time is right." Ginevra replied, pouring some tea on her cup. "My Queen, is Mrs. Potter coming today?"
"Yes, I believe she'll visit us today… Why? Do you need anything? You know you can count on me." The Queen said gently, studying the worried face of the young woman in front of her.
"I just wanted to talk with her, that's all." Ginevra explained, not wanting to have that particular conversation with her future mother-in-law, it would be too embarrassing. How would Mrs. Potter act to her questions? Thinking about her speech for the conversation, Ginevra kept on eating her breakfast, not noticing the people sitting at the same table as she.
Usually the meals at the Weasley's household were so noisy that no one got enough silence to think, but here at the Palace everything was too quiet. The maids would work in utter silence, never speaking between them, never making a noise with the objects they cleaned, and never saying a word to their masters unless they were ordered to. Once again, Ginevra established a comparison between her true home and this Palace and once again, her home won the comparison.
Yes, the Palace was very beautiful, richly built and decorated, with extraordinary gardens and luxury in all of its walls… But her home was so different. The Weasleys were not rich, but they were hard working and had a strong sense of family. They were always there to help one of theirs, or even when it wasn't one of theirs in need of support. The food wasn't abundant on their table, but Molly Weasley had a big talent to cook any tiny piece of food and transform it into a true King's meal. How she missed her mother's cooking, her yelling whenever the twins pulled a prank on her, the way she always smiled after punishing them and kissed each of them before bed. And her father, Arthur Weasley, it was impossible not to miss him. As the only girl between six boys, Ginevra had always been her father's little girl. They usually spent hours talking about her interests, the things he had seen that day at work, the new horses of the Royal Guard… Everything was a suitable theme for them to talk about, but what she loved and missed the most was when she would sit on his lap after dinner, give him a big noisy kiss on his ear and have him complain that one day she would make him go deaf. Still, they both loved that routine of theirs and now that they were away from each other, with no contact at all, Ginevra wondered how her parents were faring without her.
"Ginevra, are you all right, my dear?" Queen Narcissa asked, placing a comforting hand on top of Ginny's, waking her from her thoughts.
"Yes, I am, why do you ask, Milady?" Ginevra asked in a trembling voice.
"You are crying, my dear…"
Only then did Ginevra feel the tears running down her face, clouding her eyes and making her cheeks burn. She was, indeed, crying, but she had a good reason for it… She missed her family.
"Ginevra, what's wrong? Please, don't hesitate in being honest with me…" the Queen said gently, trying to get the young woman to open up. The Queen knew that Ginevra was suffering for being away from home, away from her family. She also knew how hard it was to be engaged to a Prince against her will, knowing what would be expected from the marriage… Ginevra was a force of nature and she didn't deserve to be trapped, but Queen Narcissa had come to love that girl as a daughter, and now, more than ever, wanted her son to be happy with the young woman. The Queen was sure that they could, indeed, be happy, if only they would lower their defences and get to know each other better.
"I'm just feeling home-sick, Milady… When will I see my family? Can I visit them?" Ginevra asked with hope etched on her face. So much hope and excitement that the Queen felt like complying, but she couldn't. The Royalty Laws didn't allow the bride to see her family between the engagement and the wedding, so a visit to town was out of question.
"I'm sorry my darling, but it's not possible for you to visit them. You shall see them at your wedding in a few days, and from that moment on you'll be free to visit the town and your parents, don't worry…" Queen Narcissa explained, seeing the girl's face fall into a frown.
"I have no choice, do I?" Ginevra mumbled sadly, finishing her tea and realising that the King wasn't in the dinning room and hadn't been for a long time. `Good, I wouldn't want him to hear these conversations…'
The Queen and Ginevra spent the morning talking about the flowers that would be used on the wedding, as well as the menu for the social lunch. Once again, Prince Draco didn't show up for the meal, making Ginevra become a little more worried about him. Was he trying to avoid her? Was he thinking about her proposition for him to marry Miss Parkinson? Somehow, both options made her feel sad and made her heart ache just a little. Thankfully, Mrs. Potter arrived right after lunch, and Ginevra received the Queen's permission to spend the afternoon with the other woman.
"You look worried, Ginevra… What's wrong?" Mrs. Potter asked concerned, while they strolled around the garden.
"The Prince and I keep fighting all the time, but when we don't fight, things get a little too intense… I just don't know how to act, how to react or how to feel." Ginevra sighed in despair. She really was feeling confused with all of those mixed-up emotions, and needed someone a little more experienced, like Mrs. Potter, to give her a new perspective.
"I feel like there's something you aren't telling me… You know you can trust me, Ginevra, so don't hesitate to do so." Mrs. Potter insisted gently, sitting on a stone bench, under a big old tree.
Ginevra sat down next to Mrs. Potter and sighed, recalling the speech she had practised all-night and even at breakfast.
"The night of the ball, that Parkinson girl and Mr. Zabini were the last guests to leave… Miss Parkinson said that it had been a pleasure to meet me and I replied by saying that the only thing she had met that night had been my fiancée's endowments… After that comment I left towards my bedroom and just as Parvati was finishing taking off my dress, Prince Draco showed up in my room, without bothering to knock first, and demanded that I apologised to that… that woman. I ordered Parvati out and we started fighting. Without even realizing how, the Prince pinned me against a wall, started rubbing his body against mine and then we kissed, hard." Ginevra explained, receiving shocked gasps from Mrs. Potter. "Yesterday at breakfast I made a very rude, although true, comment and as a consequence, I hurt the Prince's feelings. Last night I went to the stables to apologize and to bring him some food… He did not accept nor refuse my apologies, but he allowed me to assist to the birth. I even told him he was still on time to break our engagement and marry Miss Parkinson, but he didn't reply… As I prepared to leave I tripped but he secured me in his arms and I just started to kiss his neck and earlobe. I don't know what made me do that, I truly feel ashamed for behaving like that, but I just couldn't help it. It happened before I realized it…"
"I can see there have been a lot of things happening, as of lately." Mrs. Potter replied, deeply in thought as she studied a near-by fountain, the soothing sound of the waterfall helping her think. "From what I've heard I drew some conclusions… Ginevra, my dear, I believe you're beginning to fall for your fiancée. I can see that you're afraid to hurt him and feel the need to ask for forgiveness, even if you were correct on your comments, that means that you care for him, deeply so. You also offered him a chance to be happy with the woman he seems to prefer, which means you desire him to be truly happy, even if not with you. No one else, but a woman in love, would be so unselfish to the point of giving up something she could have for herself. About that kiss in your bedroom… Tell me how you felt about it, at the moment and after it, as well."
"It was such an explosive contact… I had never been kissed before, although I've seen my brothers doing it more than once, as well as my parents, but never had I expected it to be so intense, so powerful, so frightening." Ginevra blushed scarlet, remembering that night. "His mouth just kept on teasing mine to open up under his and then, his tongue touched mine like a soft caress. I don't know if it's supposed to be like that…"
"Yes, it is…" Mrs. Potter replied quickly, a knowing look on her face.
"When he started to rub his thighs against mine I almost lost the ability to stand on my feet. There was a hard pressure against my lower stomach, but I have no idea what it was…" Ginevra trailed off, curiosity all over her face, making her soft brown eyes glitter.
"That… uh… Ginevra, what do you know about the masculine sexual organ?" Mrs. Potter asked with a blush of her own.
"Oh, that… I've seen my brothers naked, lots of times, when I took the hot water from the kitchen to the bathroom. They have a… I believe George calls it his broomstick, while we don't…" she replied with a shrug of her shoulders.
"Oh sweet innocent girl… Your brother is a prat and you shouldn't trust anything that comes from his mouth. I'll try to explain everything to you." Mrs. Potter replied with a small embarrassed smile. "Ginevra, men have a penis and women have a vagina… When a man and a woman like each other, they get aroused, they feel very strongly about the other. The man's sexual organ grows and fits into the woman's vagina, until his seed explodes inside of the woman. This is what happens to make women get pregnant… But making love should only happen between a married couple, not as a way of release, like many men do, and some women as well. That's just sex…"
Ginevra's face was shocked and surprised. Never had she heard that part of the story from her brother's mouths… Those idiots were useless as informants.
"So, that's what I felt against my lower belly, that night? His…?" she asked slowly.
"Yes, his aroused member. He desired you that night, Ginevra, which is probably a good thing. It might mean he's interested in you, may even feel something for you..." Mrs. Potter explained, her cheeks going back to their natural colour, instead of deep red. "I believe you feel aroused by him, as well, because you liked his kiss and you kissed him, as well. I'm sure the two of you will be a passionate couple…"
"Perhaps. For now, I need to know if he wants to end our engagement and marry Miss Parkinson."
"You can ask him about it now…" Mrs. Potter smiled amusedly, pointing towards the approaching black mare being followed by her small colt and the Prince.
"He's so cute, isn't he?" Ginevra commented with a proud smile on her lips, as she watched the small group.
"The colt or the Prince?" Mrs.Potter teased, studying her friend's reaction.
"Well, to say the truth, both…" Ginevra replied and then turned her attention to Prince Draco who came to greet both ladies.
"Good morning, Mrs. Potter, Ginevra…" he bowed slightly and kept a scowl on his face.
"Good morning, my Prince. Congratulations on the colt, he's beautiful." Mrs. Potter said in a gentle voice, admiring how the small black colt trotted around his mother, rubbing his neck on hers in a clear show of affection.
"Thank you…" The Prince replied, placing his hands inside his black trousers' pockets. That posture was one Ginevra was used to observe on her brothers and usually it meant nervousness, but what was the meaning of the gesture in the Prince? The same? If so, why was he nervous?
Mrs. Potter observed the way the Prince couldn't take his eyes off Ginevra, and decided it would be better to give them some privacy. Quietly she walked down the garden, admiring the rose bushes, but remained in sight, to watch over them.
The couple remained quiet. Ginevra didn't know what to say and the Prince didn't know how to start on what he wanted to say, but soon enough she took the courage and spoke first.
"He's gorgeous… Have you named him, yet?" she asked with a bright smile, while she watched the colt running around his mother.
"No." was the clipped answer.
"Have you thought about it?" she insisted, if only for the sake of maintaining a conversation. After all, he had had plenty of time to think of names for the small creature. Why was he behaving like he didn't care?
Her answer came in the form of a shrug of shoulders. That action, so full of despise for her inquiry, made Ginevra become frustrated and extremely angry.
"Fine, you want to be a cold git? Go ahead and see if I care… I've got six older brothers, Prince Draco, I know how to deal with prats like you, but I bear with them because I love them… You, I don't have to bear your awful moods. Have a nice day, Your Highness." She spat angrily, turning around to leave, but a strong hand curled around her shoulder, making her stop and turn to face the Prince, once again. Not even the sight of his softened pale features made Ginny stop scowling, her quick breathing making her chest rise and fall rapidly. "What now?"
"I don't love her." Prince Draco said in a clear, strong voice, dropping his hand from Ginevra's shoulder. "I have never loved her, probably never will."
Ginevra's face remained expressionless, although, inside, her stomach was churning nervously. Somehow she felt relieved that the Prince didn't love Miss Parkinson and wouldn't call off their wedding, but she didn't want to analyse the matter much further, afraid of what laid beneath her reactions to Prince Draco. Afraid that Mrs. Potter was correct, and she was truly falling in love with him.
Not knowing what to reply to him, Ginevra remained silent, looking him in the eye: brown on silver, until he finally kept on talking.
"I'm not interested on marrying Pansy. That would be a plain suicide, for anyone. The girl is too clingy, too superficial, too… annoying." He complained with a grimace, running a hand through his shiny blond hair, making it stand on end, giving him a boyish look. "My mother chose you; I've accepted her choice and I'll marry you in a matter of days…"
"You sound so resigned…" Ginevra replied sadly, sitting on the grass, under the big old tree, that provided enough shelter from the hot sun. She understood him perfectly; after all, she also had resigned herself to marry him, giving up on her beloved freedom and dreams for the future.
The Prince sat down on the grass, next to Ginevra, but they both remained in a pleasant silence, of two persons who understood completely what was expected of them. The only sounds surrounding them were those of the waterfall near by and the sounds of Luar's hooves trotting around the garden with her baby. The summer was starting to turn into autumn, the days getting smaller and cooler, but still, the sun still shone, warming their skins pleasantly. It felt so good to sit there, in silence with the sun bathing her face that Ginevra ended up falling asleep, her back against the old tree trunk and her head leaning on the Prince's shoulder.
When Ginevra's head fell on his shoulder, Prince Draco was surprised, but made no move to break the contact. Soon, he felt more than heard Ginevra's deep breaths as she fell in a light sleep. Carefully turning his neck around, trying not to wake her up, the Prince studied her face, looking so peaceful in her sleep, her dark red eyelashes forming half-moon shapes against her flushed cheeks, her full lips slightly open and moist, inviting for a kiss he dared not give her, the scent of her skin invading his senses, allowing him to categorize that smell as hers, and no one else's. A soft gush of wind circled the couple, causing a few tendrils of fiery red hair to get loose from her sophisticated hair-do. After having seen her with her hair down on a number of times, he had come to prefer it that way, soft, flying around her, framing her young face, covering his hands and harms as he made love to her…
`Whoa! Watch your thoughts, mate…' he scolded himself; shocked with the course his thoughts were taking. Prince Draco slowly raised a hand to her face and gently placed the lock of hair back behind her ear, feeling relieved when Ginevra simply smiled and buried deeper on his side, her face nestling against his neck, her breathing raising the small hairs on his nape.
"Have you bored her that much, uh?" Mrs. Potter said playfully as she approached the couple sitting under the tree, with a big, pleased smile on her lips.
Prince Draco stared at her coldly, a sneer on his face directed at the meddlesome young woman.
"No need to distort your lovely face, Draco, I was just joking. She has been very worried, lately, and she hasn't been sleeping well… I believe she found you trustworthy enough to protect her while she dozed off." Mrs. Potter commented, both saying the truth and trying to make Prince Draco warm up to the young woman in his arms. Apparently, her words were successful because the Prince's face became neutral, no sneer distorting his face, as his eyes showed confusion and… longing, maybe? Too hard to tell by his eyes, solely. "Make sure you treat her right, Draco, she's a wonderful person. Ginevra might have a big knowledge on several things, including magic, but still, she's very naïve about many other things. Take the time to get to know her and you'll see how easy it is to love her… I already do."
"Stay out of my personal matters and worry about your own life, Mrs. Potter." He spat, standing up abruptly, making Ginevra's body fall heavily on the floor, for she had been leaning against him. A loud crack announced that her head had just hit the large tree root jutting from the ground.
"OW, bloody hell!" Ginevra screamed in pain, surprising both the Prince and Mrs. Potter. "Damn!"
"Ginevra, watch your language!" Mrs. Potter reprimanded, trying hard to hide the laughter bubbling on her chest. "That vocabulary is awful on a lady's mouth."
"Well, why don't you try to speak like a lady after cracking your head open?" Ginevra replied sarcastically, grasping her head with both hands. "Bloody git, you could have warned me you were getting up!"
"Trust no one, Ginevra, that's lesson number one…" Prince Draco sneered, turning around and leaving both women alone, allowing a huge amused smile to appear on his face, now that they couldn't see his face. That young woman was full of surprises and the owner of a fiery spirit… That pleased him.
"Are you alright?" Mrs. Potter asked gently, helping the other girl up on her feet. Ginevra swayed a little but soon she felt well enough to speak and walk at the same time.
"I'm fine, except for the pain in my head… Let's go inside, I've had enough of Mr. Complex Prince Draco for one day. He confuses me so much, Hermione. One moment he's being pleasant and the other he's being the evil sneering git…" Ginevra complained, slowly walking back to the Palace's side entrance. As they were arriving to the double doors, someone called Ginevra.
"Ginny!" a familiar male voice called. Ginevra stopped immediately and turned around only to find a tall, bald man, around his fifty years, running on her direction with a big smile on his face, and his blue eyes shimmering with happy tears.
"Daddy!" Ginevra screamed happily and gathering her skirt in her hands, she ran as fast as she could to her father's open arms, burying her face on his Royal Guard's robes. "I can't believe you're here! Oh, I've missed you so much…"
"We miss you too, honey… It's hard to live without my little girl around. How are you?" he smiled warmly, lovingly kissing her nose and holding her tight in his arms.
"I'm well… It's hard to live with people I know nothing about, but Mrs. Potter and Queen Narcissa have become my good friends. I only wish I could visit you, though…" Ginevra said, trying to stop the tears from falling, although she wasn't succeeding. "How are you? And mother?"
"We are alright, but your mother misses you terribly. Thankfully she has the company of the maid the Queen hired to help us at home. It was a very nice gesture from her… Send her our appreciation." He explained happily, looking down into his daughter's warm eyes. "I traded my work location for the whole week in hope that I would catch a glimpse of you… I guess I was lucky."
"Thank you for doing that, daddy… You've just given me enough strength to carry on for a few more days until the wedding." Ginevra sighed softly, burying her face on his neck, smelling his familiar scent… The same scent she remembered from her childhood, of when she sat on his lap, in front of the lit fireplace, listening to his deep voice narrating wonderful stories of brave princes and beautiful princesses. Being close to him, after a period of separation, gave her strength, comfort and the bravery to marry Prince Draco, because as soon as she was married, she could visit her family whenever she wanted and she could provide them with a slightly better life. "I love you, dad… Tell Mom I miss her, as well as the boys."
"We love you too, and you'll see us all at your wedding, in a few days." He smiled and hugged her tightly once more. "By the way, you look wonderful in those clothes. I always told you you were a princess, didn't I? My little princess…"
Ginevra chuckled and kissed his warm cheek before stepping back from his embrace, already missing his familiar touch and gentleness.
"We'll see you soon, my little lioness…" he whispered and slowly went back to his rounds on the Palace's gardens, once in a while looking back at her with sad blue eyes.
"So much love…" Mrs. Potter whispered next to Ginevra, surprising her. "I can only imagine how much love exists in your family, when you're all together…"
"Oh, we show our love in the strangest ways, Hermione… My mother yells and fusses over us, my father grins and tells jokes, allowing us to get away with most of our pranks, my brothers like to treat me as if I were some kind of new-born baby and I just like hugging them to near death… Sometimes I prank my brothers, but I always get away with it, I just need to put on my innocent face and they melt in a puddle at my feet." Ginevra chuckled, although there were tears in her eyes.
"Let's go back inside; I'm sure you're emotionally drained right now." Mrs. Potter advised, guiding Ginevra back to the Palace's entrance.
Close by, Prince Draco assisted to the emotional encounter with sad eyes, eyes that expressed a deep longing for a family that loved him that much. Ginevra was lucky, and if they ended up having a child, he hoped she was able to give that much love to the small baby. Perhaps the child wouldn't become as cold hearted and unhappy as his or her father.
*****
My dearest readers:
1 - THANK YOU SO MUCH for your reviews, they are wonderful and make me want to keep on writing. I've considered dropping this story a lot of times lately, but I promise I wont.
2- That part about the colt's birth and the Prince being selected to be the King, well, that was all my invention, I don't know if such thing happened back on those days.
3 - I'm sorry for the mistakes about "paws" instead of "hooves" and "bolt" instead of "colt", I know nothing about horses!
4 - The wedding is on the next chapter!!! Here's the invitation card, don't miss it!
5 - This chapter isn't BETA-ed, yet. My BETA hasn't yet returned last chapter and I'm worried about her, but as soon as she does, I'll post the revised chapter, alright?
6 - This afternoon I've finished 2 out of 5 school works. I've been so stressed these last week that I don't know how I haven't had a break down, yet.
7 - My birthday is next SATURDAY, December 11 th, and I'll be turning 21 y-old. Isn't it a beautiful age?!
8 - LOVE YA ALL!
Carina
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