In Seven Days

Chapter Seven

In Seven Days

Figuring It Out

Day Six

Thursday 24^th December 2009

By request of her mother Ginny, Draco and their two children apparated to her family's home three hours early on Christmas eve. Preparations were to be done and the table was to be set. The roast, which had been pre-cooked the day before, was to be finished off. The decorations were to be finished, presents were to be laid out and some late gifts were to wrap. Frankly, Ginny had no idea how this was accomplished year after year. But it was.

Three and a half hours later, dinner was served.

Ginny sat next to Draco and her children on either side of them and opposite Fred and George who, the more she looked at them, seemed to be watching her husband's plate way too much. When their mother had called them, she turned to Draco.

"Give me your plate."

"What?" he said with a frown.

"Give me your plate, now," she said hurrying him along with a gesture of her hand, "while they're gone." He obliged her and she took it only to switch it when Fred's, no doubt the mastermind of the two. She put his plate in place of her own and gave hers to her husband.

Draco watched this display of Platerobics with a slight smile of confusion. "And what in Merlin's name was that?" he said looking at her.

She smiled wickedly. "You'll see."

He watched the wicked grin, which, in all honesty, bridged on maniacal, and suddenly understood. "Well, in case I can't stop laughing afterwards, thank you." He kissed her cheek.

"Hey, hey! What did I say yesterday?" Fred said as he and his brother came back to the table.

Molly eyed him. "Fred, sit down and eat." He shut up and sat down next to his brother.

All Ginny had to do right now was wait. She didn't have to wait long though, these were her brothers after all, as questions kept being shot in Draco's direction form both of the twins before her.

"I love Christmas, Malfoy?"

"Mum's specialty, you know. Goes all out every year."

"You haven't touched your greens!"

"Bad Malfoy."

"So, what about those carrots, eh?"

Some time through the meal George stopped the insinuations long enough to come right out and ask, "How's the meal Malfoy? Has mum outdone herself yet again?" as he chewed on his own food. Next door to him Fred was downing his like he had never had anything so delicious.

Draco noticed it as well as Ginny had. Neither of them had stopped looking at his plate. "Well, your reflection here certainly seems to think so. Why don't you ask him?"

George raised an eyebrow. "'Cause I'm asking you mate, how are the peas?"

Fred stopped eating suddenly and a roaring noise sounded in the room which seemed to come from his stomach and echoed down into the pits of his bowels. George slowly turned his head to his brother, his eyes opened wide at the green colour Fred was sporting on his face.

"Fred? Bro - you alright?"

"I don't know," Ginny said as she put down her napkin and stood up. "He looks a bit ill don't you think George? Perhaps it was something he ate, what you think Fred?" she said bending down for him to catch her eye. "Did you eat something bad? Something you couldn't possibly think would end up on your plate as it started off on my husbands?" She turned and picked up Sebastian on her right. "Come on Draco, we're leaving." Draco was watching the whole thing with a - really - suppressed smile but stood up anyway taking Cadence on his left with him.

"Ginny-," Molly protested.

"No mum." She put up a free hand before bending her knees to catch her brother's eye again. "They know what I said the last time this happened. It seems they are deaf as well as stupid." She stood up again. "Good night everyone. Merry Christmas. Happy new year and all that." She turned and left the kitchen to get her coat.

"Here," Draco said helping her put it on.

She shoved her arms in the coat harshly and then stopped and turned to him. "You don't think I was too harsh do you?"

"I think that you said what you had to say. Whether it was harsh or not is something different entirely. But thank you."

She shook her head. "Way to avoid the question, Draco," she said rolling her eyes and going outside.

"Well your family has never been a very good topic to discuss with me, you know that. I just prefer to stay out of this. I cannot help it if your brothers hate me. It's their choice. Personally, I only care about what you think so really it has nothing to do with me if they don't listen to you. That's your field."

She smiled warmly. "Really? You care what I think?"

"Er, yeah I do," he said obviously.

"Well, you're welcome." She apparated.

He stared at the now empty space and followed shortly after with Cadence.

***

"I'm cutting you off," she heard behind her. Ginny turned at the voice knowing instantly who it was and confronted him with a disdainful glare.

"What are you doing here? Can't you leave me in peace for my few remaining hours with my family?"

"Well, it's hardly a few. It's about nine o'clock now so I would say you have around fifty-one hours left. Give or take a few of course."

Ginny scoffed before turning back around. "Oh, of course," she mimicked before collapsing onto the sofa again. She faced the fire refusing to talk to him.

"But, as I said before, I am cutting you off."

This caught her attention. "What do you mean?"

He looked at her pointedly. "What do you think it means?"

"Ginny? Are you coming down, we want to open the gifts now!" she heard echoing from downstairs

"Yeah mum, move it!" said a slightly younger voice.

Ginny sighed. "I'm coming, hold on a minute!" she yelled back.

"Any longer and we'll be a year older mum, hurry up!"

"I don't know anything when it comes to you, why don't you tell me?"

"Well, seeing as you were so damn aggressive about leaving a little while back, and seeing as you hate the fact you have to leave in two days, I have taken them away and you can leave now."

"What?"

"You can-."

"No, I heard you. How dare you? You give me this, tell me I have the shortest time possible and now you want to take it away from me earlier? Where's your damn compassion?"

"I must have left it in my other trousers, sorry."

"No, you're not sorry. People like you aren't sorry. People like you get off on seeing misery, you don't care about anyone."

"I don't care about anyone? You have no idea who I am. My job is to care about everyone. It's who I am. It's what I do. I bring hope - and joy - and insight to people who were too blind - or stupid - or care-less to do it for themselves the first time." He stepped closer to her. "So before you start spitting out accusations, Ginny, I suggest you think before you speak." He calmed down and stepped back. "I must say though, you arguing like this is not helping your case. I'm still sending you back."

"Why?"

"Because you are getting out of hand. I have had threats before. I have been strangled, pushed off ledges, stabbed even but you -. You have done nothing besides say things and mean them. At least with my other... subjects, I knew that they were just making empty threats. You though, you mean it and I don't want you to stay here if you are going to be looking for ways to avoid going back instead of just accepting that there is no way."

"Can I just say something?"

"No," he said shaking his head.

She frowned. "You don't even know what I'm going to say."

"Yes I do. Ginevra, there are numerous stages when it come to this and I have seen them all. Stage one: Confusion, not knowing where to go or what to do because of all the stress. Stage two: Anger, not wanting to stay because it's all a waste of time. Stage three: Anger again, just this time it's because you want to stay. Even empty threats are made harm comes to me via wands, balconies, knives, frying pans-."

"Frying pans?"

"Oh yeah, it's happened. Anything to stop them from going back. Stage four: Bribery, you all try to negotiate. It doesn't work. Nothing works. This is just the way it is."

"I wasn't going to negotiate."

"You weren't?" he said in a knowing way that almost made her sick.

"Just... please let me stay for Christmas. Please."

"It was you who asked me why I gave this to you in the first place. The way you said it made me think you wanted to just go and get it over with. You're saying that you still want to stay? Even though it's going to be ten times harder?"

"Yes I am. Just one more day. Please, and I promise I won't look for ways out, I promise."

"Ginevra," he said staring at her as if he were peering over a pair of spectacles, "you're negotiating."

She shrugged indifferently. "I'm desperate."

***

"What took you so long?" Cadence asked as she played idly with a bow. Ginny knew she couldn't wait to rip a hole through the wrapping and get what was underneath.

"I was combing my hair." They all simultaneously looked up.

"It looks the same," Cadence said with a frown.

"You'll understand in a few years, don't worry." Cadence watched her with an 'are you crazy?' look before looking back down at her present.

"Erm, hold on. It's still Christmas Eve. Shouldn't we, at least, be waiting until midnight?"

"I gave them an ultimatum," Draco said answering her question. "Either now, one present and the rest tomorrow, or wait until midnight." He let Cadence continue.

"I don't think I'll guess what they chose." She watched the paper go flying as Cadence opened the box her present was in. Her eyes opened wide as she took out the crystal clear light blue statuette of a ballerina who stood in a pirouette on what looked like a silver stand with a winder at the side.

"It's - it's," Cadence stuttered looking at her present with her mouth open. "How did you - I saw it in the store but how did you -." She got onto her knees and stumbled over to them hugging them in turn. "Thank you." She sat back down and twisted the winder until it couldn't turn anymore. It started playing a tune as the ballerina turned around and around. She first did the five basic positions of ballet before extending a leg backward in a straight line into an arabesque, and then extended it forward with a bent knee into an attitude. She turned again into the pirouette, and then fouetté before ending with the fifth position as the song came to a close. Cadence sat in silence, as did her company before she looked up at them again. "I love it. Thank you." She went forward a little to grab the paper and searched through it until she looked up at Ginny. "Thanks mum, I really love it."

"Me?" she said grabbing the paper. "Oh, yes of course, me." She laughed stupidly. "Ahem. You're welcome sweetie."

Draco heaved a sigh. "Sebastian's turn." They all looked at the little boy and nearly laughed when they found him asleep, his hand dangling over the edge of the chair next to his father and dead to the world. "Okay, not Sebastian's turn. What about you?"

"Me?" Ginny said for the second time that night.

"Yeah, go ahead and pick one, just let me take him upstairs." He picked up his son and walked to the stairs to ascend them.

"Mum," Cadence said once he was gone.

"Mmm? Yes?" she answered.

"Open mine." The girl handed her a small awkwardly wrapped box from deep inside the base of the tree. It shook a little as she brought it out but when she left it, it went still again. Ginny took it from the girl and began to tear the paper away. She caught sight of what lay underneath and gasped. It was their family portrait. Except this time it was smaller and it didn't move. "Now you can take us everywhere we're not."

Ginny looked up at the little girl in front of her. She saw the tear stains from when she had opened her present and Ginny had the right mind to think that she looked the same. She laughed a little before looking back down at the picture. "Why isn't it moving?" she asked her.

"So you know for sure."

"Know what for sure?" she said with a slight frown.

The little girl smiled. "So you know for sure that we aren't going anywhere."

Ginny laughed again and pulled her into a bone crushing hug which was returned with every inch of love she had. When they broke apart they were laughing stupidly and sniffing through the tears that were pouring down.

"You know, at this rate I won't have any liquid left in my body." They laughed again.

"Mum?"

"Yeah?"

"I don't think you were harsh on Uncle Fred. He's always doing that to dad and he never says sorry, or means it when you tell him to. I would have done worse actually."

"Like what?"

"Wait for him to throw up all over the table and then ask him to say sorry. He would be so humiliated he would have to mean it. That way everyone would know not to mess with you again."

"Divine humiliation huh? Yeah I could do that."

"Well, there's always next year, mum." They laughed at each other again. "I'm going to bed."

"You're not staying for your dad's present?"

"Nah, you're probably just gonna give him what you gave him for his birthday anyway. I don't want to be around for that."

"And what's that?"

"Mum, please. Even though I understand it, don't make me say it out loud." She shuddered, "Eew," and then ran up the stairs to her room.

After a while of waiting for him Ginny dug under the tree for the present she had bought for him. Well not her - the other her - well, it was still her. She had even opened it to see what it was and she had sat there staring at it wondering just how in love with him she was. She found the large shape and took it out. She remembered having a hard time hiding it from him in the first place and having to shrink it in order to get it away from his suspicious eyes. She knew he had gone through most of the things in the bag which was why she had put it in her pocket before she left the store and his other present in the bag.

She walked up stairs with it in her arms. It wasn't as heavy as she recalled but she still had a bit of a rough patch on the stairs as she tried to see them and almost slipped trying to see over and under the box. She made it though. She walked along the corridor and opened the door to her room. It was dark, as dark as rooms go when there are no lights and it's night.

"Draco? Are you in here?" she said into the darkness.

"Um, where else could I possibly be?"

"Well, it's a big house. Why didn't you come back downstairs?"

"I did, but there was a big bonding session going on, I didn't want to intrude."

"Oh. Well, I brought you your present."

"Is it the same one you got me for my birthday?"

"Um, no I don't think so." She had put two and two together and guessed just what it was by the time she heard the disappointed tone in his voice.

"Oh."

"Don't worry, this is better. I hope." She brought it over and lit a candle after setting it down on the bed. Draco sat up and sighed wiping the sleep out of his eyes.

"What is it? And why didn't I see this in the bag with my other presents?"

"I knew you were searching through them. You have no idea what the word surprise means, do you?"

"Not in the family I come from, surprises aren't exactly welcomed." He began to read the card. "May it help to protect you in times of need?" He frowned and looked at her. "In times of need? What does that mean?"

She just smiled. "Just open it." She too had had that same expression when she read the card. When she opened it and seen it though, it had all clicked. She remembered him telling the story of a family vacation his family had taken to a place called Angel falls in south-eastern Venezuela, on the Rio Churún when they were in school. It was the only one he cared to remember.

He ripped off the paper to find a clear case with a model moving around inside. It was illuminated as if the sun was shining and there were people inside it. They were laughing and running about screaming in glee. An older man was splashing at a woman who could only be his wife while a young boy, a very familiar young boy just canon-balled into the water, just in front of the waterfall that fell into the water behind them, to splash them both.

Ginny could see the expression in Draco's face moving from a great interest to profound realisation. She knew it because she had worn it too. As she had seen the happy faces, especially considering who they belonged to, she had realised what it was and what exactly the card meant.

It was Draco's happy memory.

"Oh my..." He swallowed hard and looked at his wife. "Ginny, how - when - how did you do this?" She could hear the lump in his throat as he tried to find the words to say. He was watching the people screaming with laughter. "I don't - I don't know what to say." He looked even closer at them. It was exactly how he remembered it. "I can't - can I? I just want to -." She didn't know what he was saying but he was pointing at the case as if he wanted to remove it.

"Yeah, go ahead, nothing will happen."

He carefully took of the glass case, the light remained where it was and he put a finger into the water. It was warm, just as it had been that day. Everything was captured, even the part where his father had tried to take off the top half of his mother's bathing suit and ran out of the water. She was screaming 'no!' while laughing at the top of her lungs but fighting back all the same. Four year old Draco was sitting near the bank watching them and no doubt keeping the memory safe somewhere deep inside where he would one day tell it to his girlfriend in school of the only time he had seen his parents happy when he was four years old on a vacation to Venezuela.

It had never happened again. He looked up at his wife after putting the case down.

"I love you, with everything I know."

"Good," she smiled as he pulled her to him. Without another word, without another thought, Draco leaned forward and kissed her intensely. When they parted he leaned his head against hers. She felt completely weightless, and had she not been lying on the bed, she suspected she may have fallen to the ground.

"We should get some sleep, Christmas is never easy here."

"Yeah, I guess so. Especially with what I did by my parent's tonight, tomorrow is going to be a long day of kissing butt."

"At least you only have to kiss Molly's, the rest of the day will be spent as you being the receiver of said butt kissing."

"True. True." She curled up beside him comfortably and lazily tossed a leg over his before resting her head by his chest and closing her eyes. Tomorrow was a brand new day; sleep confirmed it and it brought her another day close to leaving her life behind.

Suddenly Ginny stopped mid-yawn. Sleep. It did confirm a new day, refreshed and new. If she didn't sleep, there would be no new day. There would be no saying goodbye. She wouldn't have to leave. She smiled; perhaps it wasn't so bad after all.

As she drifted off, she heard a tapping noise, just once and then again, and then again. She sat up on one arm and looked over to the window. A small stone hit her window. She frowned and stood up to walk toward it. When she opened it to yell at whoever was throwing stones she got a stone in her mouth. She spat it back out into the garden and was pleased to who it had landed on. Janos Elliot.

"Get down here. Right now."

"Wh-," she started and then remembered that her husband was right next to her. "What for?" she hissed.

"Come down here."

She huffed and turned around ready to slam the window shut but thought twice about it. She threw on her robe and went downstairs to find him standing with his arms crossed and glaring at her.

"What do you want now? You remind me I only have one more day and now you want to what? Tell me it's all over again?"

"Exactly."

She caught herself. "What?"

"I told you that if I even got the suspicion that you were trying to find a way to stay I would send you packing."

"But I wasn't-."

"What do you call that then, up there?"

"Can you read minds or something?"

"Something."

"Look, I didn't mean to think of it. It just came to me. Come to think of it, I might just try it."

"Ginevra. You are going back."

"No I'm not." She turned around to go back to the house. She then stopped and turned back to him not at all surprised to see him still standing there, usually he would have just disappeared but she had the slight feeling he knew she would come back. He always seemed to know. "Why are you so anxious anyway?"

"I don't know what you mean."

That did it for her. "You keep on telling me that I can't stay, it's impossible to stay. You tell me others have tried but always end up failing." She sat down. "If it's impossible, what's wrong with trying if you know I'll just fail?"

"I have told you how it works. You only get to stay for the time you requested. You learn what the effects of your choices are. That's all. In the end it returns to normal."

"Yes, you've told me that before. I want to know why you're getting so upset if you know it's impossible. Why are you freaking out over the fact that I mean it when I say I will find a way to stay. Why you are turning up at Merlin knows what time when you hear a thought I have and feel threatened enough to-." She looked up at him. She mentally kicked herself for not realising it earlier.

Sleep.

"That's it isn't it? It's sleep. If you don't sleep, the day doesn't turn."

"I don't know, it's never been tried before." He glared at her. "No one has ever tried it before."

"No one has ever thought of this before. They obviously didn't want to stay badly enough. I just have to stay awake."

He laughed emptily and stared a she rounded her. When he came back to being in front of her she eyed him suspiciously.

"What?" she said a little apprehensively. The way he was looking at her was not comforting.

"You can't stay awake forever, Ginny." With that said, he disappeared.