"Harry! Harry! Can you comment on the recent surge in sales of the Potter sponsored Firebolt?"

Harry smiled politely at the Prophet reporter.

"Well-" "could it be to do with your shameless advertising campaign?" interrupted another reporter.

Harry scowled.

"I suppose you could say that," he said darkly. "Or it could be that Viktor Krum has one"

"Ah yes. The only person to fly better than you. How do you feel about that?"

Harry sighed, "Viktor and I are good friends, as you all know. I deeply respect the man. Now if you don't mind." He turned away from the scrum and entered Weasley's Wizard Wheezes.

"Alright Harry?" Ron smirked as Harry closed the door with a sigh.

"yeah," Harry grinned.

"You love it, don't you?"

"Only when they don't hound me in the street" Harry laughed.

"Gin's out the back helping George."

"Cheers mate." Harry headed behind the counter and into the store room. Ginny was sorting through a box of Canary Creams. Harry leaned on the door frame, watching her.

"Need a hand?" he asked. Ginny jumped, dropping the box in her hands. She looked round.

"Don't do that!" she stood and walked over to him.

"Aww, why? I love that grumpy face," he drew her into his arms and kissed her forehead. She punched him lightly on the shoulder.

"So where are you taking me tonight?" She smiled sweetly at him.

"There's a muggle place I want to take you to. It's not far from here," he said, rolling his eyes.

"Oooh!" She cooed. "That sounds fun."

Later...

Harry and Ginny were bickering as they left the restaurant. Harry accused Ginny of flirting with the waiter and Ginny was not having any of it.

"I can't believe you can stand there and accuse me of - of flirting!" She yelled at him, storming away from him. He jogged to catch her up.

"You were! and you know it!" he bit back, grabbing her arm and turning her to face him.

"How dare you" she spat at him, freeing her arm from his grip. She stomped away from him down the alley leading to the Leaky Cauldron. Harry decided not to follow her directly. He still had plenty of muggle money in his pocket, and he didn't fancy being caught by reporters in the middle of a row with Ginny.

Harry couldn't understand it. Six months ago he was preparing to ask her to marry him, but those plans were forgotten when she had been very drunk at a party and kissed old flame Dean. Since then they'd done nothing but fight. Arguments started about the smallest things. Last week for example she'd not spoken to him for an entire day after a yelling match that had started because he'd left the toilet seat up.

Instead of entering the Leaky Cauldron he walked further down the street to a muggle bar. heading inside he decided it was a good place to stay for a couple of drinks, anonymous. He went to the bar and ordered a double scotch.

"Hell," he thought. "I've earned it." He found a quiet corner and settled himself in the semi darkness of the alcove. He enjoyed people watching, especially muggles. It grounded him. He felt normal when he was anonymous.

Six drinks later he wasn't quite so anonymous. The karaoke had started and a random stranger had dragged Harry up to the mic with him singing some classic Queen. Harry, his vision a little extra fuzzy and his limbs not under his full control had decided this was a brilliant idea and was bellowing out the song with his fellow drunk. They weren't particularly tuneful but judging by the cheering in the packed bar their enthusiasm was catching. After the song the stranger dragged Harry back to the bar by his arm and ordered shots of something or other. Harry was too drunk to notice that the drink that was put in front of him wasn't scotch. He downed it and nearly choked. His new drinking buddy slapped him on the back several times, laughing.

"Sorry mate!" he yelled in Harry's ear.

"Wasn't expecting that" Harry yelled back.

"I'm Steve" the stranger put out his hand and Harry shook it.

"Harry" he grinned "What was that you just bought?"

"Want another?" Steve laughed heartily and waved at the barman. Two more shots sat in front of them.

"One! Two! Three!" The two men both downed their drink and pulled identical just about managed to hold back a cough. They caught each others eye and burst in to fits of laughter.

"Come on, there's a club down the road." Steve took Harry by the forearm and dragged him out of the bar. Harry drunkenly allowed himself to be lead down the street to a long queue outside a garishly lit nightclub. Steve took him straight past the queue to the bouncer on the door. He muttered a few words to the man and he waved them through, winking at Harry as he past. Had Harry been less alcohol impaired he might have questioned what that wink meant, but as it was, he was quite happy to be dragged into a club by a not altogether unattractive man who kept buying him drinks.

The nightclub was packed to the rafters, hundreds of bodies pulsing to the beat of the music, almost as one entity. Harry wobbled over to the bar with his new found friend. Steve put a brightly coloured cocktail in his hands grinning.

Harry was tempted to ask what was in it, but his alcohol addled brain couldn't keep up. Steve lead him up a set of stairs and into a quieter lounge room. Scattered around the room were a number of sofas, each one housing a least one couple, many in a state of undress. Harry off handedly noticed that virtually all of the couples were same sex, but again, the alcohol in his brain stopping him from really registering what this meant. Steve carried on through the room to a sectioned off area at the back. He gestured for Harry to sit down. Harry half fell, half sat on the sofa behind him, somehow preserving his drink. Steve grinned at him and sat down. A little too close as far as Harry was concerned. He noticed how Steve's arm was up on the back of the sofa behind him, felt heat rolling off him, he started to sober up very quickly. He placed his drink carefully on the low table to his left, shifting ever so slightly away from the man next to him. Steve was watching him closely. Harry turned to say something and Steve kissed him deeply on the lips before Harry could open his mouth. Steve's hands gripped Harry's wrists and pulled him closer. As Harry started to pull away from him Steve lightly nipped his bottom lip. That little bite sent a shiver running down Harry's spine and he forgot it was a man he was kissing and returned the kiss in earnest. Steve half laughed and slipped a hand up Harry's thigh. The touch sent a jolt through Harry and he gasped a little.

Kissing Ginny never felt like this he thought as Steve pulled Harry into his lap. Strong hands ran up Harry's back, pulling his body closer to the stranger. It struck Harry as odd that he was straddling the lap of a perfect stranger, but as the hands of that stranger ran boldly down his back to cup his bottom, he forgot all about that thought. It was only when those same hands cupped his rapidly hardening cock that Harry snapped out of his reverie. He lept up from Steve's lap and started to leave. Steve stood up and gripped his arm.

"What's wrong?" He looked genuinely concerned, although that may have something to do with the loss of his company for the night.

"I just need to leave. I'm sorry." Harry ran a hand through his hair and freed his arm. He left hurriedly, and apparated back to Grimmauld Place as soon he was out of sight of the club in an alleyway. He sat at the kitchen table, head in hands. He flicked his wand at the pot on the stove. Soon he had a mug of strong black coffee sitting in front of him. He lifted his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. The first gulp did the last of the sobering up. He shook his head to clear it and dragged himself up the stairs. He dropped his clothes in a heap and fell into bed. He was unconscious before his head hit the pillow.

"Harry? Harry!"

Opening his eyes blearily, Harry groaned. The sunlight pouring in his window causing him to screw up his eyes in pain. His head was throbbing painfully. Harry rubbed his eyes and sat up in bed as Ginny knocked lightly on his open door.

"What time is it?" he asked her groggily.

"About noon. What happened to you last night Harry?" she sat on the edge of the bed, trying to read his expression on his weary, unshaven face.

"I went to a bar, had a few too many. That's all." Harry said defensively. "Ok, no need to bite my head off. Here drink this." She muttered a charm and a bottle of hangover potion flew over to her hand from the bathroom. She handed it to him and he took a large gulp. He handed her the vial, wiping his mouth and looking sheepish.

After a shower and some breakfast, Harry felt much more human. Ginny planted a kiss on his head and sat down opposite him.

"Talk to me." It wasn't a question, Harry realised. It was a command. He unwilling obeyed her.

"Look, sorry I accused you of flirting with that waiter, and I'm sorry I didn't follow you when you stormed off. To be honest with you, I'm glad I didn't. Meeting reporters in Diagon Alley when we were mid-row wouldn't have looked so good."

"What?" Ginny snarled at him. "All you care about is your fucking good press! You- you." She gave up. She was standing, her chair pushed so violently back that it had fallen over. She was red faced and her fists were clenched.

"Gin. Please-" he reached out across the table and she snatched her hand away.

"Don't. You. Dare." She glared at him. "Never mind comforting the woman you've just wrongly accused of flirting, just as long as your press is good." Something snapped in Harry. He stood up sharply.

"You know it's important!" He yelled at her.

"I thought I was important!" He looked at her, speechless. She glared at him for a full minute before storming out of the house , slamming the door hard behind her. Harry sank back in to his chair. He clenched his fist and slammed it heavily on the table.

"Fuck!"

Later that night, Harry found himself in the Leaky Cauldron with Ron, Hermione and a couple of others. Ginny was conspicuously absent. Firewhiskey in hand Ron was regailing them - again - with how he'd saved Hermionie from drowning when they were on honeymoon.

"Only after I saved you from the teeny tiny spider that was in our room!" Hermionie laughed and the others joined in. Ron's ears flushed red. This made Hermionie laugh even harder, the slight alcohol flush in her cheeks darkening.