a/n: yes yes, I really should be getting back to my very delayed, unfinished fics, but this has been floating around for days.
Disclaimer: not mine!
a/n: hey look, a disclaimer! I haven't done one of those in a while! oops...
Harry held Ginny's hand under the dinner table. It wasn't like they were trying to be obvious about their relationship, but Harry didn't want to cause any unneeded stress to his adoptive family.
It was barely a month after the Battle of Hogwarts, a month after Harry had defeated Voldemort with a simple Disarming spell. Mrs Weasley had waved away any protests Harry had made, insisting he stay with them. Not by himself at Grimmauld Place, and most certainly not back at the Dursley's. Harry had given in, and here he was.
The funerals were over; the final goodbyes had been said. Hermione had travelled briefly to Australia with Ron to find her parents, and had returned only a few days ago. Mr and Mrs Granger's memories had been restored, but they were to remain in Australia for another few weeks in order to tie up their affairs before moving back to England.
Hermione was staying at the Burrow in the meanwhile, and she and Ron were hardly ever separated.
Harry had the slightest suspicion that Mr and Mrs Weasley knew about his and Ginny's relationship, but they had refrained from bringing it up, ever. Harry guessed it must have been that whole parent intuition thing. He had no idea whether any of Ginny's older brothers knew, and Harry planned to keep it that way for as long as possible, however having Charlie and Percy staying at the house as well did not make this any easier.
Either way, the last month had been a whirlwind of sadness and tears, and of new beginnings. He hadn't felt it prudent to bring up that he was dating their only daughter, and out of respect for their mourning of Fred.
Ron, Hermione and Ginny had told him countless times that they wouldn't see it this way, that he was being silly, but Harry wanted to be selfish for once in his life and keep Ginny all to himself, because as soon as he told more friends, the sooner it would hit the papers, and Ginny would never be left alone.
Harry was suddenly brought of his speculations, as he found his name being repeated in an increasingly frustrated manner.
"Harry!" snapped Hermione, sparks virtually spitting from her eyes.
"Er, yes?" he answered meekly.
Hermione pursed her lips at him before continuing. "I asked you whether you had considered Kingsley's offer any further."
Harry was momentarily confused. He glanced at Ginny before it suddenly clicked what Hermione was talking about.
"You mean straight into Auror training without my NEWTs?" he said, frowning.
Under the table, Ginny gave Harry's hand a squeeze, as if to say, yes Harry.
"Yeah, I had," said Harry, "as much as the offer is tempting... I really don't want special treatment... I'd prefer to earn the offer through getting my NEWTs."
"It wouldn't be special treatment Harry," said Mrs Weasley earnestly from across the table, "Merlin knows you of all people deserve a break – "
"But that's just it!" Harry protested, "I only deserve it as much as anyone else! And I get twice the attention for it! I'd rather just be invisible and avoid special treatment, even if the offer is available to others."
"But Harry – " Mrs Weasley started, but Hermione cut across her.
"So you are coming back to Hogwarts for your final year?"
"Er, I suppose," stammered Harry.
"Excellent!" crowed Hermione, light dancing in her eyes in a particularly evil and conniving manner.
Ron groaned and his head fell to hit the table with a loud clunk. "Now you've got her started..."
Harry tuned out as Hermione began discussing study tactics and who the best teachers were for catch up lessons. Harry was already beginning to regret agreeing to go back for his final year.
Ginny slipped her hand out of his as she stood up from the table.
"Lovely lunch, Mum," she said loudly over Hermione's one-sided discussion. "Harry, do you want to come outside with me?"
Harry nodded, eager to get some fresh air. As he and Ginny left the room, he could have sworn he heard Charlie mutter "They're getting awfully close aren't they?" and hearing Ron answer with a not-answer.
It was sunny outside, not a whiff of clouds. Ginny grabbed his hand again, and they made their way towards a scope of trees that they often frequented. Harry liked this place because it was so tranquil, so beautiful, so away from everything else, and untouched. There was a small stream running through and the trickling water could be heard over the bird calls. He dragged Ginny down onto a small patch of grass and they lay in silence, side by side.
"It really is beautiful here," said Harry wistfully, breaking the comfortable silence.
Ginny hummed her agreement. "I always came here when I was younger, to escape the din of noisy boys... I'd come here and just daydream. Of going to Hogwarts, and later, I'd daydream of being with you, or you being here..."
Harry stretched his hand out along the grass, and nudged her hand with his. She instinctively knew what he wanted, and angled her hand so that it intertwined with his. They lapsed into silence again.
Harry had no idea how long he lay there, wrapped in such peace, in such silence with the world around him, with the girl he loved by his side.
Eventually though, someone had to ruin it. In the distance, in the direction he assumed was the Burrow, he could hear Ron calling out.
"Harry! Ginny! Where are you? Charlie wants to play a four-a-side game of Quidditch! Don't make me come find you because I really don't want to!"
Harry's eyes flicked to Ginny as a number of birds squawked and flew out of the trees. Ginny met his eyes and sighed.
"Peace over," she murmured, "Let's kick their butts."
They walked back to the Burrow hand in hand, but pulled apart as they approached the primarily red-headed group. Harry had yet to buy a new broom, so he was given one of the spare Cleansweeps by Ron.
"Brilliant timing!" Charlie grinned, "We've split it as evenly as possible, so it's me, Bill, Hermione and Ron against Harry, Ginny, George and Percy."
Ron groaned. "Charlie what have you done? We're going to get our arses whipped!"
"Not to worry, little brother! Just let the girlfriend kiss it better!" said George, a brief smirk gracing his features, before falling back into the now-familiar lines of misery.
Charlie's face was confused for a moment, but settled back into his smug grin. He seemed positive he would win.
They all mounted up, Percy and Hermione a little unsteadily, and Ron and Percy flew to the goal posts on each end of the meadow.
The game was simple, and only involved a quaffle, and for a while it seemed the game was evenly matched. Ron was a good Keeper, and managed to keep the ball out, and Percy was a terrible Keeper, but everyone could see that Harry's team was getting more goals down their end.
Harry, Ginny and George picked up their game, and soon they were steadily drawing ahead as Percy got the hang of basic Keeping.
Harry laughed out loud as Ginny feinted a pass to George, passed to Harry instead, and Harry scored a goal as Ron was trying to recover from flying in the opposite direction. He hi-fived his teammates as they flew past, and Harry was thrilled to see George grinning, and keep grinning.
He locked eyes with Ginny, and she looked just as happy as he felt about George's reaction.
Eventually a red-faced Charlie called it a game, and admitted defeat by 160 points. Ron and Hermione looked unsurprised by the outcome, and Ron merely gave his girlfriend a comforting hug.
"Where did you learn to fly like that, Ginny?" asked Bill, looking as put-out as Charlie.
"Under my Captain in fifth year," she replied, turning to wink conspiratorially at Harry.
Harry blushed and looked away. What was it with Ginny and winking?
"Right, well, you and your Captain can take the quaffle back to the broom shed!" said Bill, and he ditched the large maroon ball at Harry.
Harry caught it reflexively, and grinned back at Bill. His grinned widened as he could practically hear the frown on Charlie's face.
The group headed back, Harry and Ginny lingering at the back, their fingers not quite touching. They all reached the broomshed and it was almost a fight to get the brooms in first, only Harry, Ginny, and the more dignified people like Hermione and Percy, did not participate.
Harry and Ginny waited patiently with their brooms and the quaffle, and after the last person marched away from the shed, Ginny pulled Harry in and shut the door.
"Wha – "
"Shhh!" Ginny giggled, and pulled him in for a snog.
Harry dropped the broom and quaffle as he heard Ginny's broom clatter to the ground. He wrapped his arms tightly around his girlfriend, pulling her closer and deepening the kiss.
It was awkward, because they were in a tiny, dark broomshed, but to Harry, it was also one of the least awkward things in the world. The feeling of Ginny all around him, her flowery scent, her fiery beauty. It felt so right, and it felt like he was just plain old Harry, boy who was the boyfriend of Ginny Weasley, and not Harry Potter, defeater of Dark Wizards, the Chosen One, the Boy-Who-Lived.
Ginny's tongue traced his lips and he chuckled. One of his hands was around his waist, the other running down her side. Ginny had a hand wrapped around his shoulders and buried in his hair, the other was where Harry had dared not go, and it rested on his bottom.
Harry opened his eyes slightly and stared into Ginny's deep brown eyes. She flushed under his scrutiny, and whispered, "Thanks for a brilliant afternoon." She was so close that Harry could feel her eyelashes fluttering against his cheek as she slowly lowered one in what Harry saw as an incredibly seductive wink.
He rested his forehead against hers, and they both panted, slightly out of breath. He moved towards her lips again, but at that moment they were blasted in sunlight as someone wrenched the shed door wide open.
Charlie stood in the doorway, a mixture of shock and indignation crossing his face before settling into a scowl. "Oi!"
Harry and Ginny shuffled apart in the little space they had, but Ginny kept her hand locked in Harry's, refusing to let go.
"Got a problem, big brother?" asked Ginny in that borderline dangerous voice of hers.
"Yeah, I do! What the hell do you think you're doing?"
Ginny stepped out of the shed, pulling Harry with her. She daintily pulled out cobwebs from her hair, and even brushed a few spiders out of Harry's.
"Well, I guess we're making up for lost time," she said primly, and marched off to the house, Harry stumbling after her, leaving Charlie making unintelligible noises of outrage.
"It seems the gig is up," she murmured to Harry. "Let's make a scene!"
"Er, Ginny... are you sure that's wise..." Harry worried.
"Positive." said Ginny.
Harry gulped as he saw that dangerous glint in her eyes that he loved and feared at the same time.
Without letting go of his hand, Ginny drew him into the lounge room, pushed him into a squishy couch, and sat on his lap.
Harry shifted embarrassedly, and looked around the room to see seven faces looking back at him. Ron, Hermione and George merely rolled their eyes and resumed their game of Exploding Snap, and Harry avoided looking at Mr and Mrs Weasley, the adoration and love gleaming out of Ginny's mother's eyes were almost too much to handle. Percy and Bill looked astonished, and it wasn't long until they remembered they had voices.
Charlie barged in at that moment, took in the scene, and scowled again.
"What did you mean 'making up for lost time'?"
"Charlie, you're so out of it," said George dismissively, "They've been going out since Harry was in sixth year."
"And obviously they couldn't be together while Harry was on the run, otherwise Voldemort would have had even more reason to target us all," said Ron without looking up from his hand of cards.
"Hang on," said Percy slowly, "since sixth year? When Ginny was in fifth year?"
"Yes, Percy. When I was fifteen. Harry missed the Quidditch Final because he had detention and then when he finally made it back, I kissed him."
Harry thought he heard a wistful sigh from Mrs Weasley.
"Really, Bill, did you never notice how Ginny was always asking for information? More than the rest of us? Especially when we found out they spent a few weeks at yours?"
That came from Mr Weasley, and Harry and Ginny both blushed when they realised how obvious they each must have been at different times.
"Since Ginny's fifth year?" repeated Charlie weakly. He sat down, for all appearances shocked from the revelation.
"Wait, George, how did you know? You weren't at Hogwarts by then..."
George rolled his eyes and snorted. "It was obvious. Ginny's only been talking about him since she could actually talk, and when she went silent in her letters, it wasn't hard for me and Fred – " George stopped suddenly, paling slightly, before bravely continuing on with a small shake of his head. "For me and Fred to connect the dots. And then after the Final Battle? They were inseparable. Like I said. Obvious."
Bill frowned. "So... so you all knew about it?"
"It was obvious, really," said Mrs Weasley, smiling fondly at the pair on the couch.
"Right, well, in that case..." started Charlie, looking confused.
Conversation in the room drifted to other topics, as the three oldest Weasley's adjusted to the news.
Harry was happy to lock his fingers with Ginny's and just observe the goings-on in the room. It was good to see George become animated as he beat Ron in Exploding Snap several times, and watch him groan as he himself was beaten.
Harry excused himself at one point to go to the loo, and it was on his way back that he got cornered.
Percy, Bill and Charlie backed him into a corner, looking determined.
Harry offered the red-haired men an awkward smile, but they did not return it.
"Now we know that you're Harry Potter," started Percy.
"... But Ginny is our only sister, and if you hurt her..." continued Bill.
"There won't even be a body for the Auror's to find." concluded Charlie firmly.
"Deal?" the three asked in unison.
"Deal," Harry repeated weakly.
The four made their way back to the lounge room – or safety, as Harry now wanted to call it – and he made his way back to his girlfriend.
"You know, you really don't understand those two at all..." came Ron's voice, floating over George's groans of frustration as the game exploded loudly.
Read and review? Pretty please? I'll love you forever...