Ginny, Hermoine and Luna bustled around the Burrow's kitchen adding pinches of cinnamon to this bowl, chocolate chips to the next, and stirring a third batch as the scent of freshly baked cookies filled the room.
"Mmm…Cookies." Lavender Brown giggled as she wandered into the kitchen, Ron following with his arms around her waist and a goofy, teenage-boy grin on his lips. Ginny noticed Hermoine's lips twitch out of the corner of her eye but her brown haired friend covered her emotions easily with a thin smile. Ginny felt a twinge of pity for Hermoine but let it go instantly; knowing that feeling sorry for her friend would only make Hermoine feel worse.
"Chocolate chip." Luna smiled in her own airy way, not oblivious to the shift in Hermoine's mood yet focusing the couple's attention away from her. Ron's smile brightened as he reached a clumsy hand forward and captured three cookies in it. Lavender giggled in her nails on a chalkboard way as she playfully slapped Ron's hand, pretending to be disgusted with his gluttony.
Ginny walked over to the stove, ignoring the couple, as she put a soft hand on Hermoine's arm to swift for anyone else to notice in a moment of comfort. "I thought you two were in Diagon Alley for the day?" She said, her tone making the statement more of a question.
"We were." Lavender said after swallowing a bird sized bite of a cookie. "But then we decided to come back." She explained with no real explanation in her sing song voice. Ginny thought she saw Hermoine cringe by the sink but she couldn't be sure.
"Right well, we're almost done in here." Ginny said as she pushed a few strands of her red hair out of her face. Hermoine carefully waved her wand, causing the counters and dishes to begin scrubbing themselves in a magical frenzy. The friends watched in silent awe as Hermoine's spell had the kitchen clean in less then five minutes.
"Impressive." Ron grinned to his friend as he took a fifth cookie and tossed it in his mouth.
"Thanks." Hermoine murmured as she adjusted her hair and stopped the kitchen from scrubbing itself. "I think I'm going to read for a bit." She said before straightening her shoulders and striding out of the kitchen.
"Maybe we should do some reading as well." Lavender winked up at Ron with a knowing smile on her lips.
"Reading?" Ron asked, ever oblivious.
"I believe she's trying to use code for wanting to snog you." Luna offered calmly, seeming unaware of Lavender's scowl.
"Oh!" Ron laughed, his face turning a bright pink. "Let's go." He said with a smile as he pulled Lavender out of the room by her hips, his lips already catching Lavender's before they were fully out the door.
"And then there were two." Ginny sighed at Luna who had begun to twirl her hair absentmindedly.
"I think Lavender's been stealing my Pufflewings." Luna said her voice so quiet that Ginny had to lean forward to hear her clearly. "Every week one of them goes missing and they're used mostly for lust spells." She explained though Ginny thought Lavender's lust was more fueled by hormones than potions. "Perhaps I'll go check on them." Luna concluded before walking out of the room towards her borrowed bedroom in the Burrow.
"One left." Ginny frowned at her reflection in the window before deciding it might be best to leave the over-crowded house for a while. Maybe a trip to the beach would suit her for a bit.
Dressed in an emerald green one-piece bathing suit and a pair of denim shorts, Ginny walked barefooted to the beach not too far from the Burrow. It wasn't long before her feet hit the sandy floor of the beach and Ginny wandered close to the shore, sitting in the sand and stretching her creamy legs so that her toes brushed the river's tide.
Glancing around Ginny noticed an empty lifeguard's post about twenty feet away with its peeling white paint and a family of three playing in the water even farther down. She wondered for a moment what it would be like to be an only child like the girl splashing around in the water away from her but banished the thought quickly. Ginny wasn't sure what she would've done with her time if her brother's weren't there to keep her on her toes.
Lying back in the sand, Ginny felt herself relax as the dimming sun and the sound of the waves tempted to lull her to sleep. A glance to her left however, Ginny saw Harry Potter striding down the shoreline towards her. Ginny wasn't sure if Harry had seen her so she took the moment to take in his ever awe worthy appearance.
Harry was wearing tan cargo shirts and a simple white t-shirt, looking plain as ever with his messy black hair. Yet there was always that air about Harry that drew Ginny towards him. He held a regal air about him mingled with his natural kindness that still sent a chill down Ginny's back whenever she saw him.
"Ginny." Harry grinned at her when he noticed her red hair splayed across the sand. "You wanted to escape the house to?" He asked as Ginny sat up, managing a nod as she did so. "Mind if I join you?" He asked, sitting next to her in the sand as Ginny patted the spot beside her.
"I wish Lavender was gone already." Ginny said after a few moments of silence between the two had passed. There was a small pout on her lips but Ginny couldn't find herself feeling bad for sounding whiny, she wanted to vent a bit.
"It's killing Hermoine." Harry frowned in agreement, shaking his head at his best friend's silent feud and putting a friendly arm around Ginny's shoulders.
"She's been crying a lot more lately since Lavender started visiting." Ginny said quietly as she leaned into Harry. She knew it should seem odd to be so affectionate with her brother's best friend but things always flowed naturally with Harry so she put it out of her mind. "I want to say something to make her feel better but I wouldn't know what to say." She frowned helplessly.
"She leaves tomorrow." Harry said, attempting to look on the flipside of things.
"And then we leave for Hogwarts in a few days and it all starts again." Ginny huffed. Harry laughed at her for a moment, causing the tips of Ginny's ears to turn red.
"You're not one for the bright side, are you?" Harry teased as he looked down at Ginny, catching her eyes for a beat longer than usual. Ginny felt her stomach turn to goop, something she hadn't felt in the past six months. Hermoine had been trying to help her move on but maybe being in one of the most cliché romantic spots with Harry was all Ginnny needed to toss all of Hermoine's help in the trash.
Harry let his lips curl into a soft smile as he looked down at his best friend's sister, missing the way she had looked at him like that for the past six months. "Is it corny if I tell you that you're beautiful?" Harry asked teasingly.
"Yes." Ginny said with a full blown smile before instincts took over her body and lifted her lips to meet Harry's. Their bodies became a tangled knot on the sand as each teenager's hands grasped for the other's body. Harry's hands tangled in Ginny's hair as her hands pressed into the soft skin of Harry's hips.
Gasping for breath, the two parted lips and searched each other's eyes for a reaction. "Ginny." Harry sighed though it wasn't a sigh that made Ginny hopeful for another kiss. "You're Ron's little sister." He said, forcing away the urge to lunge back into another kiss.
"And you're the Boy Who Lived." Ginny countered with narrowed eyes as she pushed him out of their embrace, not wanting him to think of her as a kid in this particular moment.
"Is that all I am to you?" Harry frowned, knowing very well that he was close enough friends with Ginny to be more then just some unintentional celebrity.
"Is all I am your best friend's little sister?" Ginny asked as her face turned a stunning red color.
"You know we're friends, Ginny." Harry huffed as he pulled a hand through his hair which had become even more of a tangled mess in their few moments of passion. "Ron would kill me if he found out about this. Fred and George would kill me if they found out about this." Harry urged trying to give her a hint of understanding of what this kiss could do to their friends.
"Right, well I wouldn't want any bad blood between my big brothers and their friends." Ginny hissed with a hint of menace before standing up from the sand.
"Ginny, come on." Harry begged, reaching up to take her hand but the red haired witch was already marching across the sand with a determined air. Harry sighed as they both knew it would be fruitless to follow after her, begging for her to see his side of things as there was nothing less forgiving than a woman scorned.