Ginny Weasley and Harry Potter sat on the floor of the common room, their shoes and wool socks kicked off and their pink toes warming in front of the fire. Snow fell softly out the window, covering the grounds of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in a thick blanket that glinted in the moonlight and made even the Forbidden Forest seem less daunting and beautiful.
Ginny was cradled in Harry's arms, her head against his shoulder, and he was absentmindedly playing with her fire red hair. Harry smelled like fresh air, sunshine, and a bite of pine, just like he always did after a Quidditch practice. His hair was still tussled and eyes bright from the wind and he grinned at her when she turned her head to look at him. He kissed her forehead and she smiled wistfully at him before turning her attention back to the fire which was crackling and sparking as it was as happy as Ginny was.
Who would have thought that little Ginny Weasley would be the object of the Chosen One's affection. She had been collecting any newspaper or magazine article that mentioned him for years and had them all in boxes under her bed at the Burrow. Some were turned yellow with their age, others were freshly cut out of Witch Weekly and the Daily Prophet. Whenever she felt particularly lonely in that big house full of boys, or didn't know what else to do with herself, she would read them and it took her away for a little while to the world that Harry Potter lived in.
She used to put them on her walls with Spellotape, but the morning she saw Harry sitting in her kitchen, in her kitchen, she ran up to her room and started tearing the clippings from her wall and shoving them haphazardly under her bed. She didn't want Harry to glance in her room and get scared away because her walls were covered with him, but she couldn't bring herself to stop collecting them or throw them away. They made Ginny feel close to the Boy Who Lived because she thought that he wouldn't give her a second glance. Obviously, she was wrong. Right now, she thought she was closer to him than anyone ever had been. She promised to herself that the next time she went home, all of the articles would go in the fire or rubbish bin. She didn't need them anymore.
"What are you thinking about?" Harry whispered into Ginny's hair, his breath tickling her ear. She smiled and repositioned herself so that her back was against his chest and his arms came around to hold her against him.
"Just some cleaning I have to do when I get back to the Burrow," she said in an off-hand sort of way. Harry took her hand, twining his fingers with hers.
"Anything I can help with?" Harry asked. Ginny's heart beat faster and she was sure he could feel it. She shook her head, trying to appear nonchalant.
"It's just some old papers that have piled up."
"Alright, then." Harry let go of her hand and grasped her shoulders lightly, turning her torso around. Ginny's arms automatically came up to wrap around his neck. Harry kissed her lips and the only though she had was that it was so much better than kissing a newspaper clipping.