It was the impression of the mattress sinking that woke her up, as if a great weight had been put upon it. Then the feeling of the duvet cover shifting over her and being pulled back, briefly letting cold air into their bed before being replaced. It was the scent, though, that made her smile. Sandalwood and musk. Even though they had only been married for a few months, she could recognize him just by smell alone. He must have just come from the shower, though she hadn't heard him come in. Stealth Auror skills at work, she thought ruefully. Her eyes fluttered open, still tucked in the haze between dreaming and wakefulness.
"Hi, Harry."
He froze. His green eyes wide, hovering just above his pillow, as if he had just been caught doing something he wasn't supposed to be.
"I didn't mean to wake you." He reached out to brush back the bright red tendrils that had fallen over her face.
"I don't mind." A yawn escaped her lips and she took the moment to stretch, the popping of joints audible all the way from her shoulders down to her toes. Harry winced at the sound.
"Long day, huh?"
"Mmhmm." Ginny had always imagined her initial injury from playing professional quidditch would be something dramatic and almost heroic, such as catching a bludger to the head. Instead she had to take her first ever sick leave for a stint in the hospital due to double pneumonia, a result of a game against Montrose played in bitter wind and rain that seemed to go on all night due to limited visibility.
"It doesn't help that I'm still getting tired and out of breath easily. But," she added quickly, seeing her husband's eyebrows furrow, " I'm feeling loads better than I did in hospital. And I am feeling better every day."
She watched his chest deflate as he released a sigh. She knew he wanted to have been there with her while she recuperated in St. Mungo's, but the nature of his job meant that unless there was a life-threatening or life-altering event back home he would have to stay the course on his field assignments. Ginny understood and, in fact, preferred it that way. She didn't want him to worry about her when he would have to focus all of his energies on the task ahead, and more importantly to her she did not want to break the trust that she was capable of taking care of herself in his absence. Though, if she had to be completely honest with herself, deep down she was glad any actual fieldwork for him was sporadic.
He turned onto his back. "You know what day it is, Ginny."
It was her turn for her eyes to widen for a moment in confusion before narrowing.
"How fortuitous of me." She said wryly.
Valentine's Day. While Ginny herself could not stand the hyper-commercialism of it all, Harry had grown up with a family that never showed affection and every year he tried to convince her to at least do something with him in honor of the holiday.
"Do you feel up to going out somewhere tonight?" His eyes caught hers once again.
"Not particularly, no."
"Well then how about... ordering in pizza and gazing lovingly into each other's eyes all night?"
She barked out a laugh. "Sure. Ok. Whatever, Harry. Perfect way to celebrate another successful mission under your belt."
A smile spread across his face.
"Sounds like a plan, then. I think the place down the block is still doing a promotion on heart-shaped pizzas." He dodged a light smack from his wife. "I have to go into the office in the morning to file all the necessary the paperwork for this latest adventure, but I should be home by early afternoon. Get some sleep, Ginny. You need it."
"Git." she mumbled under her breath as she reached out for him. He pulled her against his body and the last thing she heard before falling into the embrace of sleep was his voice sounding a million miles away.
"You know you love me, Ginny."
*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/
When Ginny woke up the next morning, he was already gone. In his wake there was a giant bar of Honeyduke's chocolate on his pillow. She rolled her eyes. Stubborn arse. Of course he would make sure Valentine's Day would be celebrated whether she wanted to or not. She eyed the offending object surreptitiously for a minute as she struggled to sit up.
Damn.
Before she could control herself her hands were reaching for it, unwrapping it, a delectable snap coming from between her teeth before her senses were flooded with resounding pleasure. He knew her too well.
Fine, if he wants to play that way, I'll just have no choice but to indulge myself, she rationalized to herself. She was so intrinsically lost in the moment that she didn't realize how much she had eaten until she bit into the wrapper folded half way down.
She didn't want to start the day yet. She just wanted to stay in bed all morning and absorb Harry's presence he had left behind, but she knew there were too many things that needed her attention before he came home again.
No matter, she thought as she carefully folded the wrapper over. They had all the time in the world now, hours and days and even years for each other now. All the time to appreciate the little things they had now.