Disclaimer: I do NOT own the characters and the setting.
Harry and Ginny: Sunset
"Ron, can you let everyone else on the team know that quidditch practice is an hour and a half early tonight?" Harry asked Ron as the two of them exited the divination classroom, happy to finally be out of the same room as professor Trelawney.
"Sure thing, mate," Ron said, quickly patting Harry on the shoulder as they went off to find Hermione, who was most likely in the library with her nose buried in a book on ancient runes or muggle studies.
A few minutes later, as the two approached the library, they ran into Luna and Ginny, who began to blush as soon as she caught sight of Harry. The two boys smiled as they passed the girls, but stopped walking as soon as they did, realizing almost a moment too late that they were forgetting that Ginny was on the Gryffindor quidditch team with them.
"Ginny, wait!" Harry called out right as the two girls reached the staircase, causing Ginny to turn around and look at them curiously, the blush on her cheeks deepening. "Practice is an hour and a half early tonight. Make sure to tell anyone else that you see who is on the team."
Ginny gave a quick nod of her head before disappearing up the staircase with Luna, headed to somewhere else in the castle.
As soon as the two girls were gone Harry and Ron entered the library and immediately went over to one of the corner tables, already knowing where in the room they would be able to find Hermione. When they reached their destination a moment later they smiled, knowing that they were completely right in their assumption that Hermione was indeed there with her nose in an ancient looking book.
"Hey Hermione," Harry and Ron said simultaneously as they sat down in the two chairs located across the table from Hermione.
"There you two are. I've been waiting for you for nearly half an hour. What took you so long?" Hermione closed the book she held in her hands before gently setting it down on the table and turning her gaze to look at both Ron and Harry.
"Well, it's not our fault Trelawney kept us for an extra fifteen minutes to talk about the signs," Ron stated, setting his bag down on the ground next to the table, Harry following this gesture, before looking at Hermione with a gentle love filled expression in his eyes.
"What are you reading there, Hermione?" Harry asked, changing the subject in order to avoid anything mushy by picking up one of the books from the small pile on the table.
"Oh. I was just reading about some ancient defense jinxes and hexes that could possibly help us," Hermione said with a smile as she re-opened the book she had been holding when the two boys walked in. She then proceeded to point to a paragraph explaining a fairly complex, and difficult, defense hex that she had stumbled across in her research.
The three sat there up until lunch, discussing various defense hexes and jinxes and what predictions professor Trelawney had made during class that day, such as that Harry would die for the millionth time and that Ron would come upon misfortune in the near future. As they were getting up to go down to the Great Hall, though, Harry remembered that they had forgotten to mention running into Ginny and Luna to Hermione. So, he decided to just bring it up on their way down to lunch, hoping that Hermione might be happy with the breaking of the silence that had fallen over them like the invisibility cloak. "Oh. Hermione, we forgot to tell you, but on our way to the library in search of you we ran into Ginny and Luna."
"That's great, Harry. Did you make sure to let Ginny know that quidditch practice is early tonight?" Hermione smiled over at Harry, happy that he was finally able to move on from and leave behind Cho Chang.
"Yeah, but do you think that she'll figure out why I made practice early?" Harry looked down slightly out of nerves, not even noticing that they were now standing just outside the Great Hall.
"I doubt it, mate. I think she might wonder a little as to why, but she won't have any way of knowing your surprise since you only told me and Hermione," Ron said as they finally entered the crowded and loud Great Hall.
"Thanks, Ron," Harry said in a voice loud enough so that only Ron and Hermione would be able to hear him above the loud din of voices in the room.
The three grew silent as they sat down at the middle of the Gryffindor table and began to eat lunch. During that time they also let everyone else on the quidditch team know about the change in time for the night's practice.
Once lunch was done the afternoon classes and dinner seemed to pass by in a blur and soon enough, before anyone knew it, it was the designated time for Gryffindor quidditch practice.
As Harry and Ron headed down to the quidditch pitch, Hermione having opted for doing more research in the library, the two discussed how after practice, once everyone else except for Harry and Ginny had left, Harry was going to bring Ginny down to the edge of the lake to watch what was to be the most beautiful sunset of the year. Once they reached the pitch, a few minutes later, they noticed that the rest of the team was already there and ready to go, which made it easier to start practice immediately and get it done quickly.
Practice, for the most part, went down without a hitch, except for a few minor mistakes here and there, and as soon as it was over everyone, except for Harry and Ginny, who Harry had asked to stay after practice, headed back up to the castle.
"Why did you ask me to stay after practice, Harry?" Ginny looked at Harry, multiple questions being asked in her beautiful expressive eyes.
"That's a surprise that you'll find out soon enough," Harry said as he gently took a hold of Ginny's hand and led her down towards the lake.
Once they reached the edge of the lake they both sat down on a blanket that had been laid out, and prepared, earlier in the day. They then began to get comfortable, both of them sitting side-by-side on the blanket with their hands intertwined. As they sat there they stared lovingly into each other's eyes for what seemed like an eternity.
After a few minutes of staring, what felt to them like an eternity, Harry took his gaze away from Ginny's beautiful eyes and briefly glanced down at his watch, smiling when he saw what time it was. "Now look up at the sky, Ginny, for your surprise," he said turning his gaze back to see her reaction.
Ginny turned her gaze from Harry up to the sky and smiled as she realized that they were witnessing one of the most beautiful sunsets ever. "It's amazing and beautiful, Harry," she said as she briefly glanced at him, her smile lighting up her face and adding a sparkle to her eyes. "Thanks for bringing me down here for this."
"You're welcome." Harry brought his gaze, and directed his attention, to the sky at the same time that Ginny redirected her gaze back at the beautiful sunset.
They watched the sunset in complete silence for a few minutes before Ginny decided to thank Harry properly by turning to him and placing a gentle kiss on his lips.
Harry gently kissed back and all the while the sunset was still occurring in the background, illuminating the two students with a golden light.
A/N: Another Harry and Ginny one shot that was inspired by our senior sunset the week before graduation. Enjoy. :D