Author: chibidraco
Beta: noscrubs12345*
Title: Forever Entwined
Rating: R
Word Count: 3,932
Warnings: Some Harry x Ginny (non-explicit) , hurt/comfort
Summary: The war is over, and things are not as Harry expects, his relationship with Ginny is fractured, his future uncertain and his search for normalcy leads him to Draco Malfoy , for they are bound together by a red string of fate. (HBP and DH complaint, EWE "Eight Year")

"An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place, or circumstance.
The thread may stretch or tangle, but it will never break." - an ancient Chinese belief

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all related characters do not belong to me.

For emeraldpanther who asked for a story about the "red thread of fate" , and thanks to olimakiella , both of you really helped me iron out an idea that just keeps growing.

Summer should have been a time of for relaxation, visiting the tropics with the largest of your worries amounting to whether or not you've brought enough sunscreen. Since Harry could remember, not one summer in his eighteen years had ever been a pleasant one; he really shouldn't be surprised this one wasn't any different.

It was kind of disappointing how beautiful the weather had been, not a cloud in sight for days. London provided the optimal weather for many a holidaymaker, but not for them. The sun, bright and warm, in the sky did nothing to warm the people attending the funerals, and only served to make the black mourning robes that much more uncomfortable and stuffy. Tears flow, handkerchiefs are put to use and everyone tries to remember the happiness the guests of honour in their velvet lined coffins had brought to their lives before this final goodbye.

Harry is not surprised when George attends his brother's funeral in bright maroon slacks and a yellow jumper with its crimson "F" square in the middle of his chest. The bandage from his recuperating ear is gone, but so is his smile. What makes him stand out in the sea of black is not so much the extravagant colours but the notable absence beside him.

Harry attended as many funerals as he could, saying goodbye to friends, allies and even a couple of people he barely knew. He spent a long time reassuring Hermione he was not doing it to punish himself out of some misguided belief he should have saved them all. Although, when he stands in the back row at Snape's burial, he does wonder if there was something more he could have done for the man. He should have met a better end than the floor of the Shrieking Shack, though he thinks Sirius would have enjoyed the irony.

It's taken him until this point to gain a better understanding of the man. He would never be able to think of Snape as just the greasy git who'd made his life impossible without remembering the love he had carried for Lily until his death. They were all victims of circumstance, some of their own creation and others they fell destined to. The last funeral of the summer belonged to Remus and Tonks, the coffins set side by side at a sombre altar. It's regrettable this was the only part of their vows their friends were able to experience. The war had not allowed for an extravagant wedding with all of their friends in attendance; the promises to 'til death do us part had been witnessed only by those performing the ceremony.

He spots Andromeda at the front pew, and, cuddled in her arms, he can see Teddy's golden brown hair and is glad the baby is dressed in a simple white robe. He knows Andromeda had struggled with the decision on whether or not to bring him to the funeral. Knows because she had called upon him just the night before to ask his opinion.

"Would you have wanted to attend your parents' funeral?" she had whispered into the night, standing on his stoop clutching Teddy's carrier in her arm.

Then she had started to cry, her tears drowning out her fervent apologies. Harry was paralysed for a moment, the question barely formulated in his mind before it dropped heavily in his heart. He gently took the carrier holding a slumbering Teddy, who had not woken even with his grandmother's gasping cries. Harry took her elbow gently in his other hand, guiding her into what had been her childhood home.

He offered her a seat on the sofa he'd purchased once he began inhabiting Grimmauld Place. Kreacher was already in bed, and he didn't bother calling for him as he made the chamomile tea himself.

He returned to see Andromeda deflated in the corner of the sofa. Teddy was still resting in his carrier, small fists pressed against his face. He held out the mug and waited for her to drink before taking a seat beside them.

"I wouldn't remember even if I had, so I don't think it really matters. It's the other things that we wish we could have experienced. Hearing their voices, having them there..." Harry took a deep breath.

Andromeda just nodded, eyes watering once more. He waved off her apologies and awkwardly patted her on the shoulder. With her eyes red rimmed and glassy and her dark curly hair pulled up in a loose bun she looked younger than her years.

"Sometimes I look in the mirror and I think I can see her, and I still cannot understand why she would take my daughter." It was on the tip of his tongue to tell her Bellatrix had been a crazy murderous bitch and that it would never make sense, but he held back because he knew the emotions were still too fresh for him to start falling apart too.

"I'm sorry, Harry. I'm the adult, and I should not be resting my sorrows on your shoulders." She wiped her face of her tears and straightened her back.

"It's okay," Harry murmured, smoothing Teddy's blanket where he rested between them. The woman had lost her husband, daughter and son-in-law in the span of months. It was no wonder she was so emotional.

They drank their tea in silence, each of them watching the rise and fall of Teddy's chest, lost in their own thoughts.

"I'm going to go," she announced, lightly patting him on the knee and rising to her feet. "I've bothered you enough."

Now, at her daughter's funeral, she seemed to have recovered, like the frail woman from the night before had never existed. It didn't matter, though. It did nothing to change his mind.

This little boy was just like him: He'd lost both his parents at an early age. He was entrusted to someone to care for him, raise him, and love him in their stead, and he had the responsibility as his godfather to do so. He had been unable to enjoy his own godfather, but he would be the best he could be for Teddy.

Towards the end of the service, he holds onto the baby while Andromeda accepts the condolences from friends. He's rocking him side to side, more for something to do then to actually soothe. Teddy is calm and seems content to suckle on his fists.

"Haven't seen much of you lately." He looks up from wiping some of the excess drool off Teddy's chubby chin and takes in his ex-girlfriend standing beside him. The light behind her sets her red strands ablaze, and she paints a pretty picture in her simple black robes and minimal makeup. She never wore much makeup anyway, only a strawberry flavoured lip gloss he could remember enjoying the taste of when they kissed.

"I've been busy," he replies quietly.

"It's been three weeks." Her tone is even, but he can see from the pursing of her mouth she's unhappy about that fact.

Had it been three weeks? Was that how long this parade of funerals had been going on?

"I thought we would get back together once all of this was over."

Harry shrugs. So had he. He's unable to look at her while he thinks of what to reply, of how to explain. What is he going to explain? He hasn't put much thought into their relationship...or the lack of one. He'd been busy grieving, feeling relieved she and most of their family and friends had managed to survive. As his gaze spans the horizon, his eyes jerk back to where he spotted white blond hair.

Malfoy? What was he doing here?

Draco Malfoy was dressed in dark dress robes that hung off of him; it seemed he had yet to gain back any of the weight he'd lost during seventh year. His mother was beside him, and Harry craned his neck to look if Lucius had dared to show his face, but he was nowhere in sight. While he had come to a somewhat cordial agreement with Narcissa and even Draco to some extent after testifying in their trials, he held nothing for the Malfoy patriarch except residual anger.

He wondered what they were talking about. Both Malfoys hung on the outskirts of the funeral, drawing Andromeda to them instead of getting closer. He watched Andromeda and Narcissa share a hug, and he could see the two women whispering to each other, Malfoy hanging uncertainty in the background with his hands tucked into his pockets. He looked out of place and a little shocked when his aunt grabbed him in an embrace. That's right. They were related to each other; technically Draco was Teddy's great cousin or something. It was funny how they had forgot their familial connections when they were trying to kill each other.

"Harry?" He swung back to look at Ginny. How had he forgotten that she was there?

"So," she prompted. "We've barely said a word to each other during this whole time, and you haven't come to see me or to talk to me. Are we getting back together?" She took a seat beside him, tucking her hands under her thighs.

"I don't know." Harry couldn't explain it. She was right there, and nothing was preventing them from being together, but he couldn't say yes.

"I'm sorry. It's just...I have a lot to think about now, and I-I need time," he tried to explain, trying to sooth the anger and hurt that crossed her face.

"You don't love me anymore?" Her face has grown pale with her question. Not as pale as he'd noticed Malfoy's though; he wondered if perhaps he was ill.

"I care for you. I always have," he answers. He had never said he loved her, wasn't sure if that's what he felt. Now, after the horror of war, he was left feeling depleted and uncertain.

"You said being with me was like a dream."

She was right. He had and it had been. The perfect kind of dream that meant family and belonging.

She let out a gust of breath from between clenched teeth, and for a moment he was worried that the famous Weasley temper would flare and she would cause a scene. He adjusted Teddy in his arms and moved him closer to his right side, away from Ginny.

"I don't understand what there is to think about. You wanted to be with me as much as I did you." She stood up from the seat quickly. "But if you need to time to think, all I can really do is wait.

"But I thought you were done making me wait, Harry," Ginny lightly accused, turning to leave. He could see Ron looking at them in concern and Hermione whispering furiously to her boyfriend in the distance.

"Ginny, wait. You're right. I'm sorry." He didn't get up because he still carried Teddy, but he patted the seat next to him. She slowly sat back down, bringing her knees closer until they touched his own.

He took her hand in his, smiling at the feel of her slight calluses rubbing against his larger ones. He had been so proud to see her take to the skies and play on the same team as him. She always had been one of the guys, tough and confident with a softer side that had become all too apparent when she had begun dating. He could recall the jealousy her suitors had drawn from him, but it had been so much simpler then. His reasons for breaking up with her were gone, though, and she was right to ask why he hadn't approached her. What was stopping him?

"I guess I'm just slow to recover from all this. Of course I want to be with you. Let's just take this slow, yeah?" he proposes.

He accepts her hug and tries to avoid squishing the baby between them, wondering why he doesn't feel any less lost. But Ron and Hermione are smiling again, so there is that.

When Andromeda comes to bring Teddy's bottle, he almost asks her where Malfoy went.

X x x X x x X

There was something about taking care of a small infant's every need that served to distract from his own helplessness.

He'd learned a lot these past two months: changing nappies, carefully bathing him and giving him his bottle. Doubts about his relationship with Ginny, his undecided career path...all of these worries were swept away with the singlehanded determination to be there for Teddy.

"Harry, you don't have to come here every day. You should be out spending time with your friends," Andromeda commented, taking the empty bottle from his hand.

"We do spend time together," he mumbled.

He did, just yesterday. They'd gone shopping in Diagon Alley. Ron and he had admired the Quidditch equipment in Quality Quidditch Supplies's window, joined later by Ginny, who'd accompanied Hermione to the apothecary.

Later, they'd played a round of Quidditch at the Burrow, and even Hermione had added her questionable skills to their friendly match. Ron enjoyed teasing his girlfriend about one of the things she never managed to excel at. He'd enjoyed himself until the pairs separated for some couple time and awkwardness set in between him and his girlfriend. He wondered where the chest monster who'd demanded attention in fifth year was, and why he wasn't raging at the unfairness of the distance between him and Ginny.

"Harry, I'm sorry for worrying you." Andromeda's apology brought him back from his wondering.

"But I'm okay, honestly. I know you're going to be there for me and Teddy." Her wide smile was so very much like her late daughter's carefree grins. "Even Cissy has been around more. I guess I have to be grateful for getting my sister back and gaining a nephew."

"Does Malfoy come too?" he asked curiously.

"Draco? Yes, he does. He's terrified of Teddy, though." Andromeda laughed. "He's fine if Teddy's sleeping, but the moment he wiggles about he treats him like a cauldron that's about to explode."

"He takes care of Teddy?" Harry couldn't imagine him taking care of a baby. "Is he good to him?" he couldn't help but ask. He didn't think Malfoy would hurt him, per se, but old habits died hard.

"Of course he is, Harry. He watches him while his mother and I talk. Then he interrupts every few minutes or so to ask us questions and make sure that what Teddy is doing is normal." She laughed again, piquing Harry's curiosity about his godson's time with Draco.

"And he doesn't complain?" As much as he loved Teddy, he'd come to learn himself the work involved in caring for an infant.

"Not one protest. He doesn't say too much of anything, actually. He's a very quiet young man."

"Wasn't always," he muttered, but didn't bother elaborating when she looked at him in question.

"It's not that I don't appreciate you, but please just don't forget to enjoy your life." Andromeda patted him lightly on his shoulder.

"I'm not," he answered briefly. He concentrated on the loose string on one of Teddy's socks.

The sound of the doorbell interrupted their conversation, much to Harry's relief. Andromeda excused herself to get the door and returned a bit later with Hermione in tow.

"Hello, Harry. I thought I'd find you here." Hermione smiled.

"I'm going to put him down for his nap. You two should go out," Andromeda urged, coming over to collect her grandson from his arms.

"I'll see you tomorrow," he promised, getting up and stretching his legs.

"Only if you want to. Now go have fun." Andromeda smiled, allowing him a moment to say good-bye to Teddy.

They left the house, Hermione descending the stairs as Harry closed the door quietly behind him, slipping his hands into his jeans and skipping down the steps to meet her.

"Weren't we supposed to meet up at the Burrow at three?" Harry didn't think it had become that late; he'd left his house at ten, and he'd only been here an hour or so.

"I thought we'd spend some time together first so we can talk away from everyone. Do you want to go for a walk?" Hermione asked, pointing in the direction of a nearby park.

"Sure?" Harry could feel all kinds of alarms going off in his head. That was as close to "we need to talk" as it got, and coming from Hermione it could be about any multitude of things she'd been cataloguing in her head until the moment she decided to get it all off her chest.

The walk to the park was brief, but it felt like it took an eternity for Hermione to start talking. They had just made it through the wrought iron gates before she asked him, "Have you changed your mind about coming with us?"

"I don't really see a point, 'Mione." It was a relief this was the subject she was broaching. He'd already received his letter from Professor McGonagall inviting him to attend an "eighth year" at Hogwarts.

"There is always a purpose to getting an education, and it's a chance to do our last school year properly." He pulled on her arm gently, drawing her closer to avoid a child running by on the walkway.

"What? With tests and homework?" He could already imagine her virtually salivating at all the school work she would take on and excel at.

"Of course, and we'd take our N.E.W.T.S..." She stopped a moment, probably realising she wasn't making the suggestion less appealing than more so.

"Neville and Luna are coming back, too. We will have a chance to be together again without the madness of last year. One year, Harry, where you would just worry about turning in assignments, which if you did them on time you wouldn't have so many problems with," she finished softly. "I think you could have fun." He took in her rushed reasoning while he moved both of them off the path to stand by an unoccupied bench when a woman pushing a pram drew closer.

It was very tempting to imagine a school year without the overwhelming oppression brought on by fanatics disguised as teachers, plots with diaries, Triwizard championships, and bloody vanishing cabinets. Luna and Neville were returning, and he was filled with anticipation about seeing his friends, but he also thought about those who wouldn't be coming back.

But Hogwarts had always been home to him, and a part of him yearned to jump onto it's moving staircases, eat his meals under the enchanted sky, and just enjoy it all before saying goodbye one final time. Maybe it would be best to build new memories in the school as the ones he carried now were of crumbling walls and scorched grounds that had fallen victim to the dangerous hexes that had flown about.

"You do that a lot now." He realised she'd taken a seat on the bench, and took a seat beside her.

"Do what?"

"Get lost in your thoughts like that," Hermione elaborated, leaning forward in concern.

"I am capable of thought, Hermione," he teased, watching her face flush. "Haven't you always said I should think before I act?"

"I know you can think, Harry," she replied, pinching him lightly, "and I'm glad you're thinking, but you're not telling anyone what's on your mind.

"And knowing you're refusing to return with us...What are you going to do alone while we're all at school?"

Harry shrugged. "I don't know. Take care of Teddy?"

"I know you want to help, but you can't just devote your life to Teddy. You need to do something for yourself." His friend twisted her hands in her lap.

"Maybe I'll take up painting murals with Kreacher." He'd spoken sarcastically, but the elf really was in the process of re-painting the entirety of Grimmauld Place.

His friend let out an exasperated sigh. "Harry, we're worried about you. All of us are, especially Ginny." She had the same look on her face as she did when she knew she shouldn't meddle but was about to do it anyway.

"She feels like your pushing her away, behaving like she's a stranger."

"Nice. Gossiping about me again are you?" Why couldn't people talk to him directly instead of behind his back as if he was too sensitive to handle his own problems?

"That's not fair, Harry. We're not gossiping. She's confiding in me because she's concerned about you. When was the last time you two went out without me and Ron? You barely see her."

"I'm at the Burrow every weekend. Kind of hard not to see her seeing how she lives there," Harry contradicted, trying to hold on to his temper.

"When you're there, you spend time with all the family. Then when you have time to yourself, you're rushing back home." She made this observation softly.

"I need to fix it up; you've seen the conditions." She should have been aware of just how dilapidated everything was and all the repairs that had to be done.

"I know, Harry, but let her help you. She's offered to stay over and help, but you always say no."

"I don't think Molly would approve of her sleeping over at my place, do you?"

"Maybe not spend the night, but I think you should spend more time with her. She's confused why you're acting this way."

"I asked her to give me time. I don't know why I'm feeling this way. I see her and I want to hold her hand and kiss her, but it feels so different.

"I've never been in a proper relationship before. It's kind of hard to when you have a madman trying to kill you." He laughed humourlessly, watching a father holding onto his son's training broom.

"Can you understand that? Can she? I'm not trying to be hurtful, Hermione. Maybe it's post traumatic stress?" He didn't really think that, and he hurried to recant his words. All he needed was everyone crowding him, placing him on suicide watch or something.

"I understand, Harry. You're just feeling lost." She curled a thin arm around his shoulders and drew him close until he rested his head on her shoulder.

"But please don't shut yourself away. Come back to Hogwarts with us. Let us be there while you work yourself out of this rut. We've been through so much together. We're not about to abandon you now. And how can you really give your relationship a chance unless you're near enough to Ginny to actually try?" Hermione pleaded, squeezing him a little.

He admitted to himself that her request was not so unreasonable. He knew he was meant to marry Ginny. He and Ron would be brothers and they would have a family. Like Hermione said, he just needed to get out of of this rut. He would still be there for Teddy, but he needed to keep moving, just like every other survivor was trying to do.

"All right."

They almost fell off the bench because of her fierce hug, but he managed to steady them in time.

"We should go and pick up your books before we go to the Burrow." She virtually wiggled in place, and, seeing how happy it made her, he could not regret his decision.

X x x X x x X

Thanks for reading!