The skies were clear, the beach deserted, and Harry Potter couldn't have felt more nervous. He subconsciously stuck his hand in his pocket, gripping the small, black box that sat there. He couldn't wait until she got there. As if upon his request, there she was. Ginny.
She looked gorgeous, and she had done absolutely nothing to obtain that look. Her ginger hair was pulled back into a messy ponytail and was still a bit damp. She'd obviously just gotten out of the shower. She never wore much makeup, but tonight, for a reason unbeknownst to Harry, Ginny was wearing a hint of blush and a swipe of mascara. 'Maybe she knows,' he panicked. 'No, how would she?' he tried to console himself as he waved her over. Her white sundress, which was set off nicely by her sun-kissed skin, blew in the wind as she ran over and catapulted herself into his arms.
"Harry, I missed you so much," she cooed as she ran her hand through his dark hair. Before he had a chance to respond, she added playfully, "I brought the basket of food. And, I spent all day making this, so you'd better enjoy it, mister!"
He loved how she always had so much energy. "Don't tell me you actually cooked the Muggle-way!"
She gave him a smug grin, tapping him on the nose once. "Okay, you're right. Still, shouldn't that count for something?"
He wrapped his arms around her tighter, whispering into her hair, "Of course it does, baby..."
She giggled. "So, are you ready to eat?"
Harry honestly didn't think he'd be able to eat with these kind of nerves, but just so she wouldn't suspect anything, he answered, "Yeah, I'm starving. Let's go..." He led her to a large blanket already set down on the ground. It had just begun to get dark, so Harry pulled his wand from his robes and mumbled, "Lumos," before he set it down on the blanket.
Ginny set the basket down and pulled out two plates and two sets of silverware. She had had no idea why Harry had insisted on having their picnic at the beach...at night of all times. At the time he had mentioned it and she had asked him why, he had muttered something along the lines of, "Just wanted to do it the way I was brought up to do it..." She had decided not to ask him what he meant.
Now, though, she realized how truly romantic it was. They didn't get many of these types of opportunities, with Harry so busy at the Auror's office and her training for the Holyhead Harpies, so when they had them, they took advantage. However, as much alone time as they had together, they had surprisingly been able to stay true to their promises of staying chaste until they were married. It was hard for a lot of people to understand, especially people like Ron (even though he secretly pretended to not like the idea of Harry and Ginny being together, but he knew there really was no one better than Harry) and Hermione, because they were vibrant, happy, full-of-life kids who loved each other more than life itself. Thus, the reason for their waiting.
There was a fairly large spread, including shrimp cocktail, deli-style sandwiches, and Mrs. Weasley's infamous macaroni and cheese. They enjoyed their dinner, but most of all, they enjoyed their time together. After dinner, they started hand-in-hand up the beach. They talked of insignificant things, such as what to get Harry for his upcoming birthday (19!) and what Ginny's training schedule was for the next week. The entire time they walked, Harry ran his thumb along the edge of the box. His nervousness wasn't so much whether or not she would say yes -- he was 99.9 percent sure of that -- but rather, how he was going to ask her without making a total fool of himself.
She caught onto his uneasiness, and asked, "What's wrong, Harry?"
Should he do it now? Was this the right time? A million thoughts flooded his head as he said, "Nothing, I've just got a lot on my mind, is all."
Trying to ease his uncertainty, she leaned up and gave him a kiss. It was short and sweet -- not an unusual type of kiss between Ginny and Harry. "Well, I'm sure you'll figure it out... Do you want to talk about it?"
'How could I?' he thought with frustration. "As much as I want to, I just can't, Ginny. I just can't."
She nodded, obviously baffled. They'd always been able to talk about everything. Ginny knew that she probably shouldn't push the issue, though, so she just added a quiet, "Okay," before they continued walking.
He took her to his the spot, the place he had known was perfect for this night since the first time he had seen it. It was the place where he had decided awhile back that he was going to ask her at. It was an area hidden behind a patch of wild grass, the tall kind that sat in marshy regions. There were several large rocks arranged in a circle, creating a sort of natural barrier against the waves. It looked out onto the water, and anyone could imagine how beautiful it would look at sunset. This was where he was going to do it; where he would change their lives forever.
"Oh, Harry..." she said softly, wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him. "It's amazing."
"Yeah, I've been coming here a lot lately." 'Oy! I shouldn't have said that!' He'd slipped up and he hoped Ginny hadn't figured it out.
"Why's that?" Yeah, she was definitely suspicious.
'Better now than never...' Harry took Ginny's tiny hand in his own, dropping down to one knee and looking up into her deep eyes, his own filled with hope, uncertainty, and above all, love. He heard her gasp softly and saw that her eyes were starting to brim with tears. Harry started, his voice trembling. "Ginny, I've known I wanted to spend my life with you since the first time I ever saw you. Even from that first meeting at the train station to seeing you run downstairs in your pajamas at the Burrow to saving you from Riddle and kissing you at the Quidditch match celebration, I've always known you were my soulmate." He pulled a small velvet box out of his pocket, and opened it up to reveal the most perfect ring Ginny could've imagined. It was silver and a small diamond was set in it, with several smaller stones circling it, making a heart shape. Harry took a deep breath. "Ginevra Weasley, will you marry me?"
The tears that had been threatening to spill over finally succeeded, leaving trails down Ginny's cheeks as she kneeled down and gave her fiancé...her fiancé...a deep kiss. It was one filled with love, passion, and she hoped Harry could feel her answer in it.
He gave her a huge smile when they pulled away. "Is that a 'yes'?"
She sniffled, wiping a tear away before answering. "You know what my answer is..."