“He’ll be here soon, I’m sure of it.”

“You know, this ‘optimism-despite-the-odds’ thing really is too Gryffindor for me, thank you very much,” Pansy ground out, wincing as another contraction began. Ginny mopped the sweat from her friend’s brow and glanced around nervously. Where was Neville, anyway? After the contraction had passed, Pansy summoned enough energy to shoot a glare at the redhead. “And he’d better stay well away, because when he does get here, I’m going to kill him.”

“You don’t mean that,” Ginny soothed, handing Pansy the Styrofoam cup that held ice chips.

“Oh, yes, I do. I’m in enough pain right now that I mean every blessed syllable. Honestly, we’re witches, and this is the ruddy twenty-first century. You would think that we’d have come up with a less painful way to repopulate this wretched planet, already.”

Ginny laughed and shook her head. “There are potions you can drink, you know – or you could go to a Muggle hospital, and have the baby there.”

“And have them shove needles into my spine? How barbaric,” she sniffed, handing the cup back to Ginny. “Thank you, but no.”

“And the potions? They can help with the pain, you know.”

“Yes, and then when Pansy Jr. is born, she’ll be higher than a kite,” she said, her lip curling with distaste.

“So you’re content to be in total pain – you just want to complain about it?” Ginny asked, snorting with laughter again.

“Shut up and get a fresh washcloth,” Pansy commanded, preparing herself for the next contraction.

“What did I miss?” Neville asked, bursting into the room. “Is he here yet?”

“The … baby … is … a … girl,” Pansy growled, her teeth bared as she fought to get through the pain without screaming. Neville grinned.

“Nev is here now, so you can let loose with the obscenities,” Ginny remarked, shooting a wink at her friend. He shook his head.

“Thanks for taking care of her for me,” Neville said, shrugging his work robes off. “I hope Malfoy wasn’t too upset that you had to leave in such a hurry.” Ginny waved her hand dismissively.

“It was no problem, Neville.”

“They’re fighting again,” Pansy said, giving Ginny a shrewd look. Ginny blushed.

“Again?” Neville asked, frowning. “You mean still. Honestly, Gin, that’s all you’ve done since you got engaged to that ferret-faced git!”

“It’s all we did before we got engaged, too, remember?” She refilled Pansy’s cup with ice chips and handed it to her. She shrugged. “I guess we’re too set in our ways to change that.”

“You do love him though, right?” Neville asked, his brow wrinkling in concern.

“You know better than to ask me that,” she chided gently. “Would I have risked pissing off half of the Wizarding World by accepting his proposal if I didn’t?”

“Yes.” Ginny snorted, and he sighed. Then, after a moment’s thought, “Does he love you?”

“There is a pregnant woman about to give birth in this room, you know,” Pansy’s voice interrupted. Neville looked properly ashamed and moved to his wife’s bedside, reaching for her hand and threading his fingers through hers.

“Sorry, love. I’m sorry I was so late in getting here, too.” He bent and placed a tender kiss to her temple, and Ginny hid a grin when Pansy’s expression softened.

“You’re here now,” she said simply, squeezing his hand. It was such an intimate moment that Ginny immediately felt like an intruder, and she reached for her cloak. “Going somewhere, Weasley?”

“I ought to be getting back,” she said, fastening the cloak about her shoulders. “No sense in staying away and prolonging the inevitable, you know.”

“He does love you,” Pansy said, her eyes slipping shut as Neville wiped her forehead gently with a cool washcloth. “He wouldn’t argue with you so much if he didn’t. That’s the only way he knows how to communicate, so he only does it when he cares.” Ginny stared at her for a moment.

“I suppose you’re right. Good luck with the baby, and owl me as soon as he-“

“She,” Pansy interjected. “Don’t tell me you’ve let Neville brainwash you into thinking she’s a boy.” Ginny laughed.

“Sorry. As soon as she arrives, I mean.”

“Mrs. Longbottom, how are we holding up?” The Healer that had been attending to Pansy shot her a bright smile, seemingly oblivious to the glare that the blonde woman was focusing on her. Ginny bit her lip to keep from laughing, and Neville wisely said nothing.

“How do you think I’m holding up? I’m about to squeeze something the size of a pumpkin through an opening that’s smaller than my fist – which I’m about to shove straight up your-“ Pansy was cut off when Neville’s hand clapped over her mouth. The look she gave him promised extreme pain when next she was able to dole it out. Ginny was surprised when the Healer laughed.

“Mr. Longbottom, it’s quite all right, I assure you. Your wife is in a fair bit of pain, and she’s refused any potions to help ease that pain – I’ve been in this field long enough to know that pain does things to people – makes them say things that they don’t mean. You look fine, Mrs. Longbottom – you’re progressing right along, even if it doesn’t feel like it. I’ll be back to check on you in half an hour.” When the Healer had gone, Neville removed his hand.

“I meant every word of it,” Pansy said darkly, wincing as another contraction began. Neville smiled and shook his head at Ginny. It was his turn to wince when Pansy squeezed his hand.

“I really should be going,” Ginny said, turning to leave.

“Freeze, Weasley,” Pansy gasped. Ginny turned and gave Neville a quizzical look. Pansy was still struggling through a contraction, so Ginny folded her arms over her chest and waited for it to pass.

“Did you need me to get you something before I go?” Ginny asked.

“You’re not going anywhere.” Pansy’s tone brooked no argument. Neville gave his friend an apologetic look, but knew better than to say anything contrary.

“I have to go,” Ginny sighed. “Do you know how angry Draco will be at me if I’m late for dinner again? He already thinks that Nev and I are carrying on behind both of your backs.”

“All that money, and he still can’t be happy,” Neville said, rolling his eyes.

“Money doesn’t buy peace of mind,” Pansy grunted.

“I still need to be getting home.”

“After all the times he’s been late getting to you, and hasn’t owled to say he’d be running late?” Pansy pointed out gruffly.

“Yes, but I am not him. I have some consideration,” Ginny said crossly.

“I want you here for the birth of your Godchild, you stupid cow!” Pansy shrieked, her eyes squeezed tightly shut against the pain wracking her body. Ginny’s jaw dropped and she gave Neville a questioning look.

“We were going to tell you at dinner tonight, but then Pansy went into labor this morning and it completely slipped our minds,” he said, smiling. Ginny’s eyes welled up with tears and she ran to the bedside to wrap the laboring woman in a tight hug.

“Buggering fuck, that hurts!” Pansy winced, and Ginny pulled away immediately.

“Sorry,” she apologized. Pansy’s expression lost its edge and she smiled at Ginny – the first smile she’d seen from the woman in nearly a week. Before Pansy could reply, there was a commotion out in the hallway. Just then, Draco burst into the room, with a MediWitch on his heels.

“I’m sorry Mrs. Longbottom,” the woman apologized. “I tried to stop him, but he-“

“Stop me,” Draco echoed, his eyes narrowing into slits at the woman. Instead of cowering, however, she glared right back at him.

“It’s all right,” Pansy said, glaring at her friend. The MediWitch left and Pansy narrowed her eyes at her friend. “And just what in the hell do you want?”

“I’ve come to fetch my fiancée,” he snapped, turning his eyes to the subject in question.

“Draco, I can’t leave now,” she protested gently, glancing from Pansy to him. “She wants me here for the baby’s birth.”

“I need you at the Manor,” he insisted. “Dinner starts at precisely seven o’clock, and you know that!”

“Merlin’s beard,” Neville bellowed, surprising everyone. “Ginny is not a house elf, she’s going to marry you! And in case you hadn’t noticed, my wife is having a baby, so take your bloody pathetic argument elsewhere!”

Draco had opened his mouth to reply, but Pansy cut him off. “Now that you’re here, you’re staying too, you son of a-“ Her words died on her lips as the next contraction took hold.

“Why would I stay for this?” he asked, averting his eyes and directing his glare at the ceiling. “This is not my child.”

“No, but it’s your Godchild,” Neville snapped. Draco’s eyes shot to him, and Neville nodded. “Pansy’s doing, not mine, believe me.”

“Shut it, both of you!” Pansy gasped. “Seeing this baby born will be a deterrent for the both of them,” she said, turning to Neville. “They’ll never have one, and that means no baby Dracos running about!”

“I think I could live with that,” Neville agreed, stroking her hair gently. Ginny gave him a soft smile.

“Well, if we’re going to be here for a while, I’m going to go and get something to drink. Does anyone else want anything?”

“I’m going with you,” Draco piped up, moving towards her.

“Oh, no, you’re not!” Pansy snapped. “You will only fight and then guilt her into leaving the hospital with you! She’s not bloody well going anywhere!”

“I want to talk to her, is all,” Draco snapped back, frowning. “And since when do I have to justify my motives for getting my own fiancée alone?”

Pansy gave him a shrewd look before letting her eyes slip shut. “You have thirty minutes, and then I want her back here. If she doesn’t come back, your head is on the chopping block, Draco Malfoy.”

Draco didn’t wait for Pansy to change her mind, and grabbed Ginny’s hand, effectively pulling her out of the room behind him. He walked briskly down the hallway, peeking into rooms until he found an empty one. He stepped inside, pulled her in behind him, and then closed the door.

“Why didn’t you send me an owl to let me know that you were going to be late for dinner?” He demanded.

She glared at him. “Why haven’t you sent me owls every time you were going to be late?”

“We’re not talking about me here, we’re talking about you.”

She sighed and shrugged her shoulders. “I honestly didn’t know that Pansy was going to want me here the entire time she was in labor, or I would have.” His expression seemed to soften a bit, and she took a step forward, wrapping her arms around his neck as she did so. “Did you miss me?”

“Not at all,” he said, snaking his arms around her waist. She laughed softly.

“Of course not; how silly of me.” She pressed her lips against his and touched her tongue to his lips, which parted immediately to allow her access. Her kisses were distracting, he thought. She knew just how to move against him; knew how to make his mind empty, save for thoughts of her, and the sensations she was causing in his own body. He only realized how distracting she could be when he felt her unfasten his pants and slide onto him.

His eyes flew open only for a moment, and then slipped shut again as she began to move. Somehow, she had maneuvered both of them onto the only bed in the room, and had freed his hardened member without his noticing. Not that he particularly minded; this was one of the unexpected perks of being with Ginny. When she was aroused, she was aggressive about taking him, no matter where they happened to be.

His mind remained in a state of excitement until they had finished and began righting their clothes, and then he remembered that he’d been angry with her. He hated that – that she used sex and his own over-active sex drive against him, to make him forget things. Before the big fight after which he’d proposed, they’d actually spoken to each other. Now, however, it felt like all they did was fight and fuck. Not that he minded the second part of that, anyway – but it was still frustrating.

He wanted to marry this woman. He wanted her to be completely his, including having his last name. For whatever reason, though, she refused to discuss their engagement. Whenever he brought the subject up, she would change it somehow. He was beginning to wonder if she really wanted to marry him, after all. And the worst thing about it was that everyone else seemed to think that he was the one putting things off.

“Mother wants us over for dinner this week,” he began, watching her smooth the wrinkles out of her shirt.

“Okay,” she said distractedly.

“She’s been asking when we’re going to set a date.” Her head popped up at this, and he frowned at the expression on her face. “What?”

“Did you tell her that we haven’t really discussed it yet?”

“Yes, and she saw right through me. We can’t keep putting this off forever, Ginny. People are starting to wonder.”

“So let them wonder – it’s our lives, not theirs.”

“Either we agree on a date soon, or I’ll set one for us,” he threatened. She stared at him.

After a moment, she cleared her throat. “We’d better be getting back. Pansy will kill both of us if we miss the birth.” She turned and left the room, leaving Draco staring after her.

As he made his way back to his friend’s room, he had to wonder. Did Ginny even want to marry him anymore?