deception
'Why are you drinking water?' Ginny eyed her husband suspiciously.
'Am I not allowed to drink water?' he asked, confused.
Ginny snorted. 'This is a wedding. You usually get drunk at weddings.'
'Yeah, with you.' Harry lowered his voice. 'But you're pregnant now and you can't drink and since we're both in the same boat I won't drink either. Not until we both go to a bar sometime and get drunk while our kid stays with your parents or with your brothers.'
His wife shook her head with a smile. 'That's stupid!'
'No, it's not.'
'Yes, it is. You won't make it a month without even a tiny drop of alcohol,' Ginny teased him.
'You let me sound like I'm an alcoholic!'
'I never said you were,' she countered with a grin. 'Seriously now, have a drink or everyone else will be suspicious. I show you how we will do this.'
At that moment, a tray of champagne glasses floated past them and Ginny grabbed two. One she passed to Harry. Smiling, she turned to the bride and groom, who spotted her and smiled back. She lifted the glass, then averted her gaze. 'And now you drink your champagne,' she ordered him with a look that brooked no argument. When Harry had emptied his glass, she thrust her champagne glass into his hand as well. 'Down it, you're drinking for two today!'
'You're impossible!' he retorted and downed the glass too, while Ginny took his original glass from his hand.
'Ginny, Harry!' A glance to her left made her realise that Molly was approaching them. 'Oh Ginny darling, Hermione picked out a really nice dress for you. It suits you well.'
'Thanks Mum,' Ginny replied and winked at Harry as if to say not for long.
'I think it's really great that Ronny suggested having two weddings so Hermione can invite the rest of her family too! He's now the second to last child of mine to get married,' Molly said a little sadly.
'Molly, you still have two unmarried children,' Harry remarked.
His mother-in-law waved it off. 'Charlie will never get married!'
'I don't get the feeling George is going to get married any time soon either,' Ginny interjected.
'He and Angelina have been together for a couple of years,' Molly retorted. 'That might be a good time to start thinking about getting married. I mean Percy already got married too and he'd only been with Audrey for a year.'
'He probably only did that because he couldn't stand not having sex anymore,' Ginny muttered, whereupon Harry tried to stifle his laughter, which ended in a fit of coughing.
'Ginevra!' her mother exclaimed, startled.
Ginny shrugged her shoulders. 'What Mum, it's true! The boy was twenty-six when he got married. People have needs.'
Molly shook her head, but despite her shock, you could tell she was actually amused too.
'Well, I always thought you'd be the last to get married, Gin-Gin!' another voice joined in. Ginny turned and spotted her brother Bill coming towards her. In his arms he carried the three-year-old sleeping Victoire.
'Why?' his sister asked.
'Because you never let anyone coddle you and you always wanted to be independent.'
Ginny snorted. 'I am independent and married. Merlin, how could you be trusted with having two daughters. I hope Fleur is a better influence on Victoire and Dominique. I know you're old Billy, but welcome to the twenty-first century,' she replied with a grin and patted Bill's shoulder.
Bill shrugged his shoulders. 'Maybe at least you'll be the last one to have children.'
'Have you forgotten our dear brother Charlie?' asked Ginny.
'From him I'll only have dragons for grandchildren,' Molly retorted with a snort. 'After all, with Ginny, I'll have to wait another decade. I'll be old and grey by then!'
'Oh Mummy, you already are,' George, who had joined in, put an arm around his mother.
'George Weasley!' she complained loudly.
Ginny grinned at Harry, stood up and held out her hand to him. 'If you'll all excuse us, I'd like to dance with my husband,' she announced, pulling Harry along with her.
'You're frighteningly good at lying to your family. Not even your mother has become suspicious and I always thought she just had to look at you and know what was going on,' Harry said when they had both arrived on the dance floor.
Slowly they moved to the beat of the music. 'Oh love, I used to break into the broom shed at night when I was six to practise flying and I did it without anyone ever noticing. I've been a pro at it for years.'
~
'It's funny, actually. Hermione and Ron got married and we're on a "honeymoon" and they're not,' Ginny replied with a grin as she pushed her sun hat a little off her face.
Harry reached out a hand and placed it on the small curve of her stomach. This was the only proof that Ginny was really pregnant, because there was no sign of other symptoms like morning sickness - so far.
'We're having a "babymoon" rather than a "honeymoon" and Hermione and Ron are getting their honeymoon too. For now, they just have to get through the second wedding with Hermione's family,' he replied as his hand ran in circles over her stomach.
Ginny laughed. 'That tickles!' she complained.
'You're ticklish everywhere, Gin,' Harry remarked with a grin, sitting up to press a kiss to Ginny's lower belly. 'I can't believe this is really happening,' he then said, briefly turning his gaze to the sea before his eyes slid back to his wife, who was lying on a lounger beside him.
The latter grinned. 'Welcome to reality, Harry!'