The Adopted Weasley

2~ Date

Arthur put a hand on Fred's shoulder to calm him down some.

"Fred, I feel the same, but as much as I hate to admit it, we're on the way to a war, it's inevitable. And honestly, as hard as it is to accept, Gracie is old enough to decide who she trusts and who she wants to date."

"But-"

"No son, calm down. Nothing bad will happen to her, Lee has proven that repeatedly."

"I know dad, but still..."

"I know."

. . .

Thursday afternoon, Grace was panicking. Luckily, Adhara was still there and the two had bonded quickly. It wasn't her clothes, she was wearing her usual t-shirt and jeans, bit doubts were creeping in.

"I don't understand why he would want to date me!" Grace said, pacing. "I'm just... nothing, lots of girls throw themselves at him and they're all better than me. They have curves, he doesn't have to worry about things triggering them, and they're just so gorgeous in general-"

"Grace, stop." Addy said, standing up and putting a hand on Grace's shoulder. "I haven't met this boy, but he sounds amazing. And I know that you're amazing, curves and looks are nothing compared to personality, and you have a lot of that. You said that this boy waited even while you were unresponsive and they didn't know if you would wake up. That's one hell of a kid, trust me. Don't let him go."

"I won't."

"And remember, you also don't need a man. You can fight through life without one."

"Is that so, Adhara?" Remus said from the doorway.

Addy stiffened, and turned around.

"It is. Men tend to cause pain, although this Lee is obviously different. He didn't leave Grace when she needed him most." Adhara said curtly.

"Yes, Lee is a good kid. But what would you base that first statement on?"

"I think you can guess." Addy snapped.

"I think I can too." Remus said, clenching his jaw. "I also seem to remember that it was your choice."

"You seem to have a selective memory!"

"Oh I have the selective memory? Of course, I'm so sorry, your highness."

"Don't call me that, never call me that."

"And why not?"

"You know perfectly well why not!"

"Well since I have a selective memory-" Remus started sarcastically.

"Enough!" Sirius shouted, storming into the room and making a beeline for Grace. "Take this somewhere else."

Grace had backed into a corner to get away from them, they noticed and looked like they felt guilty as they both left the room, continuing to glare at each other.

"Gracie?" Sirius touched her knee gently, but pulled back when she flinched. "It's okay, this fight... it's a lot older than you. You shouldn't have seen it."

Grace nodded then accepted a hug.

"I... I do need to go."

"Would you mind a tag along?"

"You can't go out in public!" Grace said immediately.

"Yes, but Padfoot can."

Grace hesitated, then nodded.