Blessings ; George Weasley

Twelve

Guess what...

I got my second tattoo today. The outline and name of my cat who died last year at an age of only 5.

I've also been up since 7am and it's currently 8pm and I'm absolutely exhausted. I feel like I could fall asleep at any moment.

-

"Dia?"

I turned to look at George who approached me as I stood in the kitchen and looked out into the garden through the window while the kids were eating breakfast, all of them having already forgotten what had happened.

"Why don't you sit down and eat some pancakes?" He asked. "There's nothing we can do right now."

I shook my head and looked into the garden again.

"I'm gonna go and confront him."

"No you're not."

"I know where he is, George."

"That doesn't mean you should go looking for him!" He tried not to raise his voice but I could hear in the way that he was whispering that it upset him. "Dia, you haven't seen that man since you were twelve years old. That's seventeen years. Who knows what Azkaban did to him. Don't go provoke him when we've got four children and one on the way that we need to protect."

"Provoke him?" I laughed. "The children are exactly why I should go. He can't just break into our house and scare them half to death without some sort of consequence!"

George walked closer to me, looking down at me as he lowered his voice.

"I'm gonna go down to the ministry and talk to my brother-in-law." He told me. "And I know the minister."

"What's that gonna help?" I laughed. "We have no prove that he's the one who broke in."

"No but we have an eleven-year-old girl who saw his face."

"I'm not having Elsie sit there and describe him."

"Dia—" George sighed. "...who here are you trying to protect? The children? ...or your father?"

I looked up at him quickly, completely shocked that he could insinuate that I'd protect my father in any kind of way.

"Fuck you." I said in a whisper, not wanting the children to hear, before I walked out of the kitchen and upstairs, closing the door behind me once I got to our room.

I took a deep breath, running a hand over my face before walking to the window, staring out of it.

Then I looked down at my stomach and placed a hand against it.

I sighed.

"Dahlia for christ sake." George entered the room, letting the door stay open.

"Don't." I said. "Just go be with the kids. I don't want them to be alone after last night and this morning."

"They're not alone. Lee just got here, at the same moment you walked upstairs. He's with them."

I simply hummed and looked out of the window again, bringing a hand up to my face, biting down on my finger.

"Dahlia." George sighed. "Look at me for a moment."

I turned around to look at him, still biting down on my finger due to feeling anxious about the whole situation.

"I would never choose to protect my father instead of the kids." I said. "They mean the world to me, and he abused me, George. Not only did he hurt his family but he trapped muggles down in the basement where he tortured and killed him. Tell me how you could assume that I'm protecting him."

"I don't know."

"You don't know?" I laughed. "I need a little more than that, George."

He sighed.

"I'm sorry, but you can't go confront your father." He said. "It's dangerous."

"He broke into our house!" I raised my voice and George closed the door to the bedroom before casting muffliato on the room. "He scared Roxi and he scared Elsie! What if he had taken either one of them?!"

"He didn't." He stayed calm. "All four of our kids are safe downstairs. Your father didn't take them, and we're gonna get some sort of security that keeps him out, but promise you won't go confront him. Just stay away from him."

I took a deep breath as I looked towards the windows.

"We are having a baby."

"Exactly, Dahlia. We are having a baby. You are pregnant and you think going to confront your psychopath dad is a good idea? He killed and tortured muggles! Why do you think he was here? What do you think he'll do if you show up there, accusing him of breaking in?"

"Well he did break in!" I yelled. "It's never going to end, George. There's my mum, my dad... Henry and Nadine. My dad wasn't even supposed to be out of Azkaban until in three years and I hadn't been prepared for it!"

I took another deep breath, forcing myself to calm down. I placed a palm against my stomach as I sat down on the bed, shaking my head.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't apologise."

I sighed.

"I shouldn't have yelled at you." I said, rubbing my hands together. "I'm just... I don't know. I can't believe he broke in. I— I didn't think that him being out meant that he'd be back in my life but he's going to torment us, isn't he?"

"No he isn't."

"He knows who you are, George." I looked up at him. "And he knows I'm with you. I told him that years ago when I visited him. Of course he found me..."

George sat down next to me.

"And I didn't take Roxi serious when she told me there was a man in her room." I said.

"You thought she was seeing that monster again."

I nodded.

"I did." I nodded. "I thought she was seeing the monster again. Remember how she woke us up all of last year because the monster was hiding under her bed and when we told her there was nothing there, she said it was hiding in her closet. I just assumed—"

I sighed.

"But she saw my father." I said. "He was in her room and he was in Elsie's room and when I hadn't seen Leah, I got so scared that he had taken her or something..."

George wrapped his arm around my waist and as I rested my head against his shoulder, he pressed a kiss to my hair, letting out a sigh.

"We'll figure this out." He assured me, brushing his knuckles over my cheekbone. "I'll stop by the ministry and then I'll buy some sort of video surveillance to put up outside of the house. We've sealed the house with magic which means he couldn't have apparated in and only our friends can use the fireplace. He can only have broken in the same way that muggles do."

I closed my eyes and brought a hand up to my face as I felt like crying.

"Do you wanna stay up here for a bit?" He asked softly. "I can bring some breakfast up, tell the kids that you aren't feeling well."

I shook my head.

"I can't just stay in bed because of—"

"That's exactly what you can." He cut me off. "I don't want you pressuring yourself by acting like you're all well when you in reality aren't feeling well."

He ran a hand to the back of my neck and I tilted my head back to look at him.

"It's your father." He said. "One you haven't had in your life since you were a girl. I wouldn't blame you for needing a day in bed."

I didn't answer.

"I'll tell the kid you aren't feeling well and I'll bring you some breakfast."