Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters you may recognize from the wonderful world of Harry Potter, they all belong to the revered JK Rowling; I just like to play with them a little.
ACCIDENTAL LOVE
WELCOMING PARTY
The day of their prank they'd had lunch together and promised to meet for dinner. By dessert, the air fairly well crackled about them and they left the restaurant in a hurry, Apparating to Ginny's flat the moment they stepped outside. Even before they reached the bedroom they were both naked and clawing at each other, searching for satisfaction. Dinner quite obviously merged with breakfast then, and Draco went to work the following day with an enormous grin on his face.
Since that day she had become the very oxygen he breathed. They spent every waking moment together when they weren't working, and even then he'd often drop by St. Mungo's, under the pretense of investigating something, to see her. Their evenings were split between his mansion and her tiny flat above Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, not doing anything particularly special, but just being together.
A week and a half later Draco found himself waiting rather nervously in Ginny's flat for her to finish dressing, so she could take him to a Weasley family lunch. The thought of meeting her entire clan at one time was chilling his blood to glacial levels, but he had no choice. This was the one thing he would have to do, and get accustomed to doing, if he were to keep this woman in his life. He would survive for her sake as well as his own. After all, there was little doubt in his mind about where this particular relationship was heading and for the first time in his life he wasn't running scared at the prospect of forever with one woman. All he had to do was convince her that staying with him was a grand idea and everything would be perfect.
"I'm ready."
"You look lovely, Ginny."
"Thank you." She leaned up and kissed his cheek. "Are you ready?"
"As I'll ever be." Draco cringed mentally when he heard the waver in his voice.
"There's no need to be nervous."
"I'm not."
Ginny looked at him cynically. "They won't bite."
"I am an Elite Auror, Ginevra, I am afraid of nothing."
"If you say so," Ginny answered casually, throwing her cloak around her shoulders.
"I thought you said they don't bite," Draco mentioned tentatively.
"Oh no, they bite, they just won't unless I tell them to."
Draco swallowed hard and nodded.
"You'll be just fine. They're going to love you!"
"Yeah," Draco mumbled, wondering what part of him they were going to love the most - his juicy thighs or his lean ribs. He supposed it was wrong to be hoping for a Death Eater alert right at this moment, one that would take him away for a week of fieldwork.
It wasn't as if he was walking into a full room of strangers. He did know Ron, and Harry would be there. He'd met Mr. Weasley on countless occasions at work, but not really paid attention to the man before. Also, he'd had the heart-stopping adventure of meeting one of the twins one morning when he was sneaking out of Ginny's flat in the early hours of the morning.
Fred or George, Draco couldn't tell the difference, had stopped him as he descended the stairs to the backdoor of their Diagon Alley shop. The man had made some comment about him having to knock loudly if he wanted Ginny's attention, because she was a sound sleeper and wouldn't yet be awake. Draco had agreed and escaped through the backdoor, before the wizard could put the time and his direction together, and come to the logical conclusion that his baby sister had been a fiery little vixen all night long.
"Let's go," Ginny suggested.
Draco watched her Disapparate. He briefly considered going elsewhere and telling her later that he'd got lost along the way, but he didn't think she'd believe him. With a heavy sigh he followed her to the Burrow.
"Here he is!" Molly Weasley gathered him into a hug before he'd even had a chance to get his bearings. "Welcome to the Burrow, Draco."
"Thank you, Mrs. Weasley," Draco managed, still trying to get his breath back while he counted his broken ribs discreetly.
"Welcome to the Burrow, indeed."
Draco glanced over to find the twins regarding him with particularly wicked expressions on their faces. His skin began to prickle as he realized he'd inadvertently walked straight into a deadly trap.
"You don't mind if we borrow him for a few minutes, do you, Ginny?"
"We've got a little welcoming party going on in the field."
"We'll bring him back."
"Can't promise in how many pieces though."
Before she could respond, or Draco could protest, the twins had gathered an arm each and were escorting him into the field beyond the yard.
When he saw what awaited him Draco had to steal himself to not struggle against the men who were holding him firmly. It seemed that all the Weasley brothers, plus Harry, were lined up on one side of a long wooden table. There were two vacant chairs waiting for the twins amongst their brothers and one on the other that he gathered was for him.
He didn't so much sit on the chair, as he was forced into it.
"If you run, we will chase you," Fred whispered into his ear.
"And it won't be pretty when we catch you," George promised.
Draco nodded his intention to stay put, for the time being at least.
"You are Draco Lucius Malfoy?" Bill asked.
Draco drew a deep breath and composed himself, reminding himself harshly that they wouldn't do anything silly, particularly if he didn't show the fear he was feeling. "I am."
"There's no need to be afraid, Draco, we just want to ensure you're suitable to see our sister and make certain of what your intentions are."
"Perhaps I would feel more at ease if I knew your names," Draco suggested, gathering his dignity from somewhere deep inside himself. "You have me at a disadvantage."
Harry stood up and grinned at his partner. "I'll do the honors."
"Thank you, Harry," Draco said.
"At the end of the table we have Ron, Fred, George, Bill, Charlie, and Percy."
"Do you feel better now?" Charlie asked with a hint of humor in his tone.
"Yes, thank you."
"What were you doing at our sister's flat on Wednesday at six-fifteen in the morning?" George asked.
"Leaving," Draco answered honestly.
"You led me to believe you'd just arrived."
"No, you made the assumption. I simply didn't correct you."
"How long had you been there?"
"I don't keep a record of hours for social visits."
"Had you spent the night?"
Draco glanced up and down the table. He had two choices right now: answer the question or run like hell. "Yes," he finally admitted softly, choosing what he thought to be the safer option. After all, if he ran they'd catch him eventually, and he'd be sweaty and dead, instead of just dead.
"She invited you to spend the night?" Ron demanded.
"You know, as well as I, that it wasn't the first time," Draco retaliated.
A sudden burst of noise from Harry garnered everyone's attention. He seemed caught between laughing and coughing. Draco had the sinking feeling that he'd just said the wrong thing - perhaps Weasley didn't know what a delightfully naughty little witch his sister was capable of being?
Ron looked as though he was struggling to remain seated. "How many times?"
"Every night."
"Ginny is all right with this?" Bill asked curiously.
"If you're implying that I'm forcing her somehow-"
Bill held his hands up to stop the tirade threatening to invade his ears. "Not at all. We just want to make sure you're not going to break her heart."
"What are your intentions?" Charlie enquired.
"I've been seeing your sister for ten days, I don't really have any intentions yet." At least not any I'm willing to share, he added mentally.
"Let me rephrase it, are you going to run off with the next pretty skirt that crosses your path?" Bill leaned forward, clasping his hands in front of him on the table.
"No." Draco pinned Bill with a hard look. "At this point in time, I am in this for the long run. I think Ginny and I could have a future together."
"A future?" Percy questioned.
"Yes, a long term future," Draco repeated slowly. He tried not to smirk at the row of raised eyebrows regarding him. "It is early days yet, so I'd rather not discuss such hopes."
"You do realize we will decide just how long-term that future is, don't you?" Charlie reminded him.
"That's curious," Draco muttered. "I wonder what your sister would make of your beliefs."
Bill half stood up, planting his large hands squarely on the table and pinning Draco with a dangerous glare. "As far as our sister is concerned we had a lovely chat about Quidditch and nothing more."
Draco couldn't suppress a snort of amusement. "If you think she's going to believe that then you're delusional."
Fred eyed him seriously. "It's up to you-"
"To convince her," George finished.
"Boys, we'd better head back soon before she comes headhunting," Charlie reminded everyone. "The kids can only keep her busy for so long."
"Yeah, time is moving on," Bill agreed. "There's just one last thing I need to impress upon our guest."
"What's that?" Draco asked curiously.
"If you so much as make her shed one tear we will kill you," Bill expressed in a serious tone. "Do you understand?"
"Yes, I appreciate your concern for your sister, but I assure you I have no intention of making her unhappy."
"That remains to be seen," Charlie countered.
"Right, is that it?" Fred looked around. "Let's go then. I don't want her pissed at me again."
"How is your arse?" Charlie asked amusedly.
"The boils are healing nicely, thank you very much," Fred responded, rubbing his tender derriere.
"Next time you'll ask her if she wants to be a test subject, if you're smart." Bill chuckled.
All of a sudden Draco was the only one still sitting at the table. He looked at the men moving away and was astounded at how they simply forgot about his presence, moving on with what appeared to be normal conversation.
"Are you going to sit there all day?" Harry asked.
Draco swung around to meet the amused gaze of his partner. "Thanks so much for the support, Potter."
"I made them promise not to hurt you," Harry defended.
"So I should be grateful?"
"I think so." Harry nodded thoughtfully. "After all, you're looking at a curse breaker, a dragon keeper, two of the biggest jokesters ever born and a non-active Auror. That's not counting Percy who could make life uncomfortable for you at work, given his position in the Minister's office."
"One of them is a dragon keeper?" Draco asked in disbelief.
"Yeah, Charlie. He claims they're harmless." Harry laughed. "Personally, I'd rather deal with a nest of nasty Death Eaters."
"You're not wrong."
"Come on, we'd better get back, or Ginny will think I'm burying your body in the field somewhere."
"Did she know about this?"
"No, she'd have murdered the lot of them before you got here if she knew. She's never really brought anyone home to meet the family before, so that's why the boys are taking it so seriously."
"I see," Draco uttered, following Harry into the yard. He wasn't sure how to feel about being the first 'boyfriend' to be brought home to meet the family.
"Draco, good to see you, son," Arthur Weasley expressed heartily as he snatched Draco's hand from his side and pumped it ferociously. "I take it you've met the boys."
"It's nice to be here," Draco intoned politely, even though his thoughts were very much heading in the other direction at the moment. "Yes, your sons introduced themselves."
"Don't worry about them, they're just a bit protective of their sister, but they all know not to step over the line or she'll make them regret it."
Draco smiled at the man, not game enough to open his mouth least what he was thinking slipped out.
"Draco, I'm so sorry they put you through that," Ginny expressed. "If I had any idea-"
He glanced at the Weasley wizards, who were all looking at him with great interest. Draco knew he could pay them back by telling her everything, but that it would more than likely cost him far more in the long run. "Put me through what? A lovely chat about Quidditch?"
"Draco, you don't have to protect any of them."
"I'm not. We had a chat about Quidditch and that's all."
Ginny shook her head at him. "Just so you know, I don't believe you."
"I know." Draco grinned as he pulled her against his chest.
While he held her he received a couple of gentle pats on the back as her brothers filed past and one 'good man' from either Charlie or Bill - he couldn't quite tell which. Satisfied that he'd done what was expected of him, Draco relaxed for the rest of the day and surprisingly enough had a good time. He discovered that all the men were very different in character, even though they were brothers. Even the twins had some defining characteristics, not that it helped him in telling them apart. Draco also discovered that their glares weren't deadly if he accidentally forgot himself and allowed Ginny to sit on his knee or cuddled her.
The prospect of settling down to family life was even less frightening by the time they left the Burrow. He'd watched Ginny's nieces and nephews run around, and had even been called 'Uncle Draco' on more than one occasion. Most notably though, Draco had watched Ginny's oldest brother, Bill, fuss over his very pregnant wife and wondered what it would be like if he was an expectant father. The thought caught him off-guard, and even more concerning, it didn't bother him all that much. His life's plan seemed to suddenly fall into place for him: he wanted to settle down and start a family, and he wanted to wake up next to Ginevra Weasley every morning for the rest of his life. Now all he had to do was bide his time, because it was most definitely too early to be considering introducing such subjects.
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AUTHOR'S NOTES
Written for dgficexchange. Thanks to Rainpuddle13 for her fantastic beta skills.
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