CHAPTER SIX

Proposal

Harry rolled over onto his side, groaning as the owl at the window rapped on the glass pane. He pushed himself from the depths of the covers and jerked the window from its rigid frame. The owl flew inward, but Harry merely shoved the newspaper under his bed. He did not want to read it, and his head hurt anyway. He hadn't slept very well. Part of him was upset at Ginny, and the other part (a substantially bigger part) was more upset with himself. He crawled back into bed and pulled the pillows over his head in an attempt to block out the noise of London drifting through the open window. The delivery owl helped itself to the change on Harry's dresser, and then it soared out the window with an indignant hoot.

He had almost fallen back asleep when he heard the sound of tiny feet in the hallway. He had been rather cold to Teddy last night. The boy had gone straight to bed once they had gotten home from the restaurant. Harry knew it was rather cruel, and he hated himself for doing it, but he hadn't wanted Teddy's company very much after his argument with Ginny. The door creaked open ever so slightly, and he could hear Teddy's small feet in on the hardwood of his bedroom.

"Hey, Teddy," he said, his voice muffled by the pillows.

Teddy ran out of the bedroom, pulling the door shut loudly behind him. Harry groaned, realizing that he would have to get up and apologize to him. He pushed himself back up, his hair sticking straight on end from the static of his pillow case. On his bedside table, there was a little hand-drawn picture of what appeared to be two people holding hands. One was very tiny and had blue hair. The other was a giant in comparison, and judging by the squiggly features, it might have been Harry. IM SORY was written on it in disjointed letters, and the one and only R was backwards.

Harry suddenly felt really guilty.

There was a knock at his bedroom door. Thinking it was Teddy, Harry pulled open the door to find Ginny. She was still dressed in her pajamas, and her hair was tangled and unkempt. In her hands, she held a card similar to Harry's.

"Can I come in?" she asked.

Harry stood aside to let her pass. She was one of the few people who had access to his house at all times. It had been Hermione's idea to keep a severe amount of protection on Harry's house, despite the decrease of danger. Everyone else who wanted to enter had to have direct permission from Harry himself.

"How did Teddy send that to you?" he asked, pointing at her card. The little boy had drawn a decent impression of a heart on hers.

She blinked. "I thought you helped him. Your owl delivered it."

"Really?" Harry asked. "I've been asleep all morning."

They paused for a moment, both standing awkwardly with their words from the night before echoing in the silence between them. Then Ginny laughed, and the sweet sound shattered any uncomfortable feelings. Harry joined her in laughing, and then put his glasses on to see everything more clearly. Ginny looked rather pretty in an old t-shirt of his and sweatpants. The thought made him laugh even harder.

"Merlin, that kid is going places," he said. "Four-years-old, and he's already messing with our heads."

Ginny sat herself upon Harry's bed, patting the edge in an invitation that Harry could join her. "At Dorothy's party last night, I started thinking about us after having a few drinks."

"Did drunk you think in my favor?"

"Yeah," she responded, sheepishly.

Harry nudged her slightly, more playful now that he was sure he was out of dangerous waters. "I like drunk you. She should come around more often."

"Harry James Potter!" she said, smacking him sternly on the knee. "I wasn't THAT drunk. I play for the national team, remember? Anyway, I realized that you were probably right about the whole ring thing. You went through the trouble of planning it, and I shouldn't act ungrateful. I let my emotions get in the way again."

Harry gave a small smile. "I'm sorry for getting mad at you, too. I was out of line."

Suddenly there was no reason for either of them to be mad anymore. It had been just a stupid argument. The harsh words had fallen away in the silence of Harry's old house. He reached up and pushed back a strand of Ginny's hair to better see her beautiful freckled face. She leaned forward and kissed him.

"Are you still mad?" asked a small voice.

Harry and Ginny broke apart to see Teddy standing in the doorway. His little face looked imploringly at them, and in his oversized t-shirt, he seemed much younger than his four years. Harry reached forward and pulled him onto the bed. His little family sat together, broken but still perfect anyway.

"No," Harry told him. "Thank you for the card."

"Yeah, I liked mine too," Ginny said.

Then suddenly, Teddy began to cry. Little tears slid from his big gray eyes and down his cheeks. They wrapped their arms around him and stroked the slightly curly, light brown hair. It was the same hair he had inherited from his father.

"Don't be mad," he whimpered piteously.

"Oh, Teddy," Ginny said, kissing his little face. "We are not mad at you."

Harry grabbed his hands. "Look, it's my fault. I shouldn't have told you until I was ready to ask her. You were just wanting to help, and you love to help."

"Are you still going to get married?"

Ginny looked at Harry. The heat was burning in his face. They still hadn't jumped this particular hurtle. "Teddy, we'll get married when we're ready."

"Will you be my mummy and daddy then?"

The two adults turned to look at each other, aghast. This simple revelation from the bottom of Teddy's heart nearly had them in tears as well. Harry had no idea that this had been bothering Teddy, but now that he thought about it, the evidence was crystal clear. Suddenly, Harry didn't see his godson, but a scrawny child with jet-black hair and a scar who cried himself to sleep in the cupboard under the staircase. That same little boy who sat by himself at parent-teacher conferences, twiddling his fingers and swinging his legs because they couldn't touch the ground. That past version of Harry could reach out and relate to Teddy, who was just as parent-less as he had once been.

"Hey, buddy," Harry said, looking him square in the eye. "We can't be your parents, even if we tried. You have parents, but they aren't here anymore. Your grandmother is here, and she loves you very much. She'll always love you like she did your mummy and daddy."

Teddy didn't understand. "I wish you could be my dad."

"I'm not your dad, but I'll always be there for you. You're my Teddy, and we'll always love you no matter what."

Ginny pulled Teddy close to her, and he opened his arms for a hug. "I'll always be here, too Teddy. We can't be your parents, but we can certainly be the coolest best friends ever. Plus, Harry's your godfather, and that's almost like a real father."

This seemed to satisfy the boy for now, and he gave a nod, his hair changing once again to blue. Harry smiled at Ginny, and a sudden thought (no, an inspiration!) struck him. Last night, his girlfriend had been mad about him trying to be 'too normal'. Well, he thought, as he noted their unkempt hair and pajamas. Now was the most abnormal of times to propose.

He stood up and yanked open his sock drawer. There, buried amongst all his mismatched socks, was a small little box. Grasping it in his hands, Harry turned back to Ginny, whose face widened in shock. He knelt down beside her.

"Ginevra Molly…" he started.

She grimaced. "Please don't call me that!"

"Sorry," Harry apologized. "Ginny, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?"

"A thousand times over, Harry, yes."

o – o – o – o – o – o – o

Kreacher had just finished bringing them another hot plate of cinnamon rolls when the hearth fire blazed green and Andromeda landed gracefully on the stone kitchen floor. She appeared tired and careworn, but nevertheless overjoyed when she saw her grandson. He gave her a giant hug, sugary-icing finding its way from his sticky fingers to her robes. Teddy's bag had already been packed and placed in the corner. The only problem was that he was not yet dressed. Harry and Ginny had decided that pajamas and breakfast at noon was a lot cooler than any normal midday meal.

"Did you have a good time?" Andromeda asked her grandson.

Ginny stood up, flashing the ring on her finger. "I don't know about Teddy, but I sure had a good time."

The older woman gave an uncharacteristic squeal of delight and hugged the two. Harry felt his ribs nearly crack with the force of her excitement; he'd have to get used to this. "Any dates? Any details?"

"None right now," Ginny responded. "But Teddy is going to be our ring bearer."

"Because I'm really good at helping," the little boy added.

Harry could only laugh.