After a hectic first couple of weeks, Harry felt like he was slowly gaining control of the whole teaching situation. He found that he very much enjoyed guiding his students to answer their own questions and found their energy and enthusiasm infectious. The day he introduced Expelliarmus to his eighth grade class was memorable when a student in his eighth grade class accidentally set fire to one of the bulletin boards, forcing him to move quickly to put out the fire before any alarms were set off.
He was surprised to find himself dealing with a bit of trouble adjusting to what he thought of as "civilian life". More than once, he'd found himself wide awake in the middle of the night, certain he'd heard something in the flat, which was ridiculous because between the Blood Seal and Unbreakables, the place was practically a fortress. That didn't stop him from prowling around in the dark, however, trying not to wake Ginny.
One night he startled awake, convinced that he was receiving a Summons and that did wake Ginny. "Harry?" she mumbled, looking up as he sat bolt upright in the bed, breathing hard. "Are you all right?"
Exhaling a long breath, Harry nodded. "Yeah, fine."
Sitting up, she put a hand against his forehead. "You're all sweaty. What's wrong?"
"Nothing. Just thought I felt something, that's all."
"Like what? Are you having any pain?" Fully awake now, Ginny swept her hands down to his neck, checking his pulse. "Your heart's going like a rabbit's. Are you all right?"
"I'm fine," Harry said, taking her hands in his. "I just felt…like I got a Summons."
Ginny reached out and ran her palm over his tattoo. "Phantom pain?"
"I don't know," Harry sighed, leaning into her touch. "I didn't expect this."
"You were under a lot of stress for a long time, love. I'm not surprised you're having some difficulty adjusting."
"I suppose I should have known. Ron had his own adjustment period. One night he stumbled into my room, completely starkers and convinced we were being attacked." Harry shook his head and smiled, remembering that particular event.
"That must have been a sight."
"It certainly was. I'm just glad Hermione was up at Hogwarts. I don't think she would have dealt with that very well." Harry sat quietly, feeling his panic subside and his heart slow down as Ginny continued to stroke his back.
"Do you want to talk to someone?" she asked quietly.
"Not yet. It's only been a few weeks, yeah?" he said after a few moments of consideration. "I'll be fine."
"All right," Ginny said, lying back down and holding her arms out to him. Harry laid down next to her, resting his head on her shoulder and closing his eyes as she ran her fingers through his hair, finally feeling the last vestiges of the phantom Summon drain out of him.
In addition to waking up in the middle of the night for no reason, he found his trousers getting tighter, a fact which bothered him more than not being able to sleep through the night. Along with Quidditch, the school also had a cross-country running team that competed in regional meets against Muggle schools, so Harry approached the Care of Magical Creatures teacher who doubled as the coach about running with the team on practices.
Terry Chau was a slight woman but hard as iron, wrestling with a reluctant rust monster as she coaxed it back into its enclosure. "What can I do for you, Harry?" she asked, wiping her hands down her jeans after locking the gate.
"Well, I wanted to ask you if it would be all right if I went running with the cross-country team when they're out for practice," he said, keeping an eye on the rust monster in the all-wood enclosure. "I don't want to be a distraction."
"I don't think you'll be a distraction," she said, looking him up and down. "Have you ever run cross-country before?"
"I've done most of my running in cities, not too much trail running. Well, unless you count chasing people across the occasional field."
"We do a mix of roads and trails. I think you'll do fine. Practices are at 4 o'clock daily." She raised her eyebrow at him. "This won't be a free ride, though. I've been looking for an assistant. Congratulations."
"Okay then. What do I need to do?"
"Just keep an eye on them. I'll be towards the front and you'll stay towards the back. Watch for injuries, horseplay, that sort of thing."
"I can do that. Thanks," he said, marveling at how smoothly he'd been manipulated into this new role.
His first appearance caused quite a stir among the assembled boys and girls. "Woah, Mr Potter, are you going to run with us?" Michael asked, giving voice to the amazed looks on their faces.
"I am. Try not to leave me in the dust, all right?" Harry grinned as they set out in the warm afternoon, following Terry as she set a five-mile course through the nearby hills. Arriving back at the Quidditch pitch, the groaning students collapsed on the grass before finally getting back up to go through the cool-down stretches Terry led them through.
After the run and stretching, Harry felt fantastic and pulled off his itchy, sweat-soaked shirt, the late afternoon sun warming his shoulders. "Wow, wicked tattoo, Mr Potter!" Thomas, the aspiring Auror called. "Richard, check it out!"
"What is it?" Richard asked as he and Thomas came for a closer look.
Feeling a bit like he was on display, Harry resisted the urge to put his shirt back on. They're just kids and they're curious, he told himself as he let them look. "It's a phoenix feather. Have you ever seen one?"
"No way," Richard breathed, "where did you see one?"
"Headmaster Dumbledore had one. He was a good bird; saved my life a couple of times."
"What's the tattoo for?" Thomas asked.
"All Aurors have one."
The two boys looked at each other, mouths open in delight. "That is so cool!"
"We're going to get totally awesome tattoos, dude!" Richard crowed, high-fiving Thomas.
Oh, but wait until you learn what they're used for, Harry thought as he headed toward the staff showers.
Between the regular running, finding his teaching groove and being home every night with Ginny, Harry felt like life was finally settling down for him. The regular activity not only helped him fit back into his trousers, but with a bit of yoga in the evenings, he was sleeping better, too. While she didn't come right out and say it, Harry knew Ginny was very glad at this turn of events.
One morning toward the end of September, Harry woke up and it seemed like his eyes just wouldn't focus properly. Sighing, he started looking in all of the dresser drawers, shifting things around and making a general ruckus.
"What are you doing?" Ginny asked sleepily.
"Looking for my glasses. I don't remember where I put them when I unpacked."
"Oh." Ginny stretched and yawned. "I'll help you look."
"Never mind, I found them. They were buried under my socks." Harry took them out of the case and put them on, the room coming back into focus. "Well, at least they're not round anymore," he said with a sigh, sitting back down on the bed.
"That's going to take some getting used to," Ginny said with a smile. "How's the prescription?"
"It's good enough for now. We'll see how it ends up once the Vision Impairment Charm finally wears all the way off."
"I could maintain it for you, if you want," Ginny said, rubbing the back of his neck.
"No, I need to let it go. I don't need it anymore. I'm not running through fields and throwing hexes at the same time these days."
"And I'm so glad," Ginny whispered in his ear, kissing his cheek softly.
October brought a spectacular Indian summer to the City with crisp mornings, mild sunny days and beautifully clear nights. Harry had been wondering what Terry would do when the sun started to go down earlier and he found out one afternoon when she handed him a little device to clip to his waistband.
"What's this?" he asked, looking at the oblong silver device.
"It's a LightCaster. You'll see what it does," she said with a smile as she handed out more of the devices to the kids from a big box.
Shrugging, Harry clipped it on and followed the group as they headed for one of the hill trails rather than a road. As the group ahead ran, he saw lights coming on as the runners approached and he ran backwards to see the ones behind them turn off as they moved out of range, so they seemed to run along a constantly-lit pathway.
"Huh, that's pretty neat," Harry remarked to Thomas who was running next to him as was his habit.
"You've never seen a LightCaster?"
"No, we don't have them in England, at least I don't think we do."
"Yeah, they're pretty cool. Magical Materials makes them. I think Serena's dad works there," he said offhandedly. The merging of the magical and technical was one thing that Harry found endlessly interesting about the American Wizarding world and he was learning that the San Francisco Bay Area was Ground Zero for the burgeoning Magi-Tech industry.
"You should see some of the things they have at SF Thaumaturgical," Ginny said over dinner when he told her about the device. "Vijay took me on a tour through all of the various departments during our first meeting and they have some really advanced equipment for imaging and such. I understand it's really exploded in the last fifteen years or so."
Harry shook his head. Voldemort really set us back, didn't he? he thought, contemplating all of the energy diverted to survival and rebuilding during those terrible times.
The next day, Harry waved to the departing cross-country runners in the deepening twilight on his way to the office before heading home. Checking his mailbox, he grabbed the pile of papers and shoved them into a pocket of his bag, nodding to Lucinda on the way out.
Harry walked through the early October evening far enough off of campus to Apparate home, hoping to find Ginny already there. When she wasn't, he sighed and changed into jeans and a t-shirt, glad to finally have a chance to relax. Might as well get a start on these, he thought as he sat down on the sofa and pulled out the stack of papers from his satchel. A small white envelope fell out of the stack and onto the floor.
"What's this?" Harry said aloud as he bent to pick it up. The envelope was very fine and the flap on the back was embossed with "Jacob Green, Green Imports and Exports, London, San Francisco, Hong Kong" in dark green. Curious, Harry slit the envelope and pulled out the note inside.
Harry, I hope this note finds you well. I want to tell you again what a pleasure it was meeting you and your charming young lady during St Ambrose's back to school reception. I confess I have already begun to take advantage of our meeting to contact Miss Weasley's brother. I do hope none of his products find their way into your classroom!
As you may have heard, I host what is recognized as the best Wizarding Halloween extravaganza in the entire state and I am hoping you and your dear Ginny will be able to grace us with your presence on the evening of Saturday the 28th of October. We Americans do love dressing up, so costumes are required! Please send your reply to the address below.
Yours truly,
Jacob Green
Harry racked his brain for an image of Jacob and finally remembered him as the salt-and-pepper-haired man that had saluted him at the reception a few weeks ago. He hadn't cared for the vibe he got from the man when he saw him in the crowd and cared for him even less when he saw him chatting up Ginny. Halloween isn't one of my favorite days anyway. No thank you, Mr Green. Tossing the envelope and letter aside, Harry uncapped his red pen and pulled the stack of papers in front of him, wading through his Senior students' essays on the intersection between the Patronus Charm and pure-heartedness.
Deeply engrossed in the essays, Harry gave a startled jump in his chair when he heard the crack of Ginny Apparating home. "Goodness, look at you, Mr Potter! Up to your elbows in corrections!" She leaned down and gave him a peck on the cheek, dodging Harry's grab as she swung her pack off her shoulder and onto the floor.
Scrubbing his hands over his eyes, Harry stood up and stretched. "You came home at the right time. I needed a break." He looked out of the windows, seeing that it was now fully dark. "Aren't you late?"
Ginny paused in her cupboard rummaging to look at Harry. "Oh, yes, sorry. I spent some extra time in the library with Ben. We have a big test coming up next week."
"Who's Ben?" Harry asked, hugging Ginny from behind and kissing the nape of her neck.
"I've told you about Ben before. Do you pay attention to anything I say?" Ginny spun around in his arms and gave him a playful smack on his shoulder.
"Of course I do. When we're in bed together, I pay attention to everything you say," Harry said with a grin.
Ginny rolled her eyes and extricated herself from his grip, resuming her rummaging, emerging with a box of crackers. "Well, I don't talk about Ben in bed, so I guess I'll have to repeat myself. I met him the first day of class and we've really hit it off, so we've been studying together."
Shoving the cracker Ginny offered him in his mouth, Harry narrowed his eyes. "Hit it off, eh? I should probably meet this 'Ben', yeah?"
"Don't you dare! He's a Muggle and as gay as they come!"
"How do you know it's not an act?"
"You jealous thing! Trust me, it's not an act."
Harry snatched the box of crackers away from Ginny and took them back to the sofa. "I guess I'll have to take your word for it," he sighed heavily in mock displeasure and sat down.
"Yes, you will. And you'll like it." Ginny leaned over his shoulder and picked up the envelope and note. "What's this?"
"Oh, you remember that guy that was chatting you up at the reception? He's invited us to a Halloween party."
Ginny read over the note with a frown. "Halloween? Harry, doesn't he know?"
"I'm sure he does. I'm going to send our refusal tomorrow, if that's okay with you?"
"Of course it is." Harry felt Ginny's reassuring touch on his shoulder and felt some of the anxiety he'd been holding on to since reading the note fade away. "I can't believe what a big deal the Muggles make out of Halloween here. There are giant shops with nothing but costume stuff."
"Yeah. You should see some of the yard displays outside of the City. I saw an advertisement for a maze in a cornfield."
Ginny took the forgotten box of crackers from Harry and sat down on the sofa, curling her legs underneath her. "One thing I can get behind though are those giant bags of candy in all the shops. Can we get one?"
"What? To give away to the kids that come knocking?"
"Oh no. Those kids can get their candy from someone else. I want a bag for myself!"
Ginny frowned at her notes, trying to decipher her hurried chicken scratches and cursing every professor she'd ever had that talked far too fast. I'm going to have to start recording these things, ugh. Looking across the crowded library, she spotted her friend Ben making a beeline for her table.
"Girl. Have I got some news for you!" Ben said in an excited whisper as he sat down across from her.
Setting aside her notes, Ginny leaned closer. "Oh? What's going on?"
"Well. You know Dorothea? That skinny mousy thing in biochemistry? Looks like she wouldn't say boo to a ghost? I was just in Admin and I heard she's on academic probation!" Ben sat back to watch her reaction, arms crossed over his chest in satisfaction at being the first to know such news.
Ginny sucked in her breath. "Academic probation? She's brilliant! What happened?"
Ben leaned forward again, his eyes lit up with delight. "So, word around campus is that Dorothea isn't quite the demure gal she puts herself out to be. I've been hearing stories that she can get quite rowdy at times," he said, miming someone drinking from a bottle.
"No! I never could tell anything on her!"
"I know! Me either! Anyway, last weekend there was that raging house party over in the Western Addition—I thought about going, but it's not really my scene, you know—and I heard the cops were called and she was," Ben paused dramatically, looking to see if anyone was listening in before leaning closer to Ginny. "Arrested! Marijuana!" he hissed.
"What?" Ginny gasped, louder than she meant to, drawing irritated glares from nearby students. "You heard all of this in Admin just now?"
"Oh no, I knew about the arrest on Monday."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Ben shrugged. "It didn't seem that important. Academic probation now, that's another thing!"
"From now on you need to tell me these things when you hear them! You can't be withholding information from me. It's not fair when you hear all of the good gossip!" Ginny sat back in her seat, contemplating the unfortunate Dorothea. She would lose her grant if something like that happened to her. And then her parents would kill her. She shook her head. "Poor thing, I hope she gets her act together."
"Well, she won't really have a choice. She's got to spend the next two quarters on the straight and narrow." Ben pulled out a thick sheaf of papers and started organizing them.
"Got any other news?"
"Hmm, well, Jackie and Tom broke up."
"Ugh, again. Those two." Ginny went back to her own notes, shaking her head. Jackie was one of those girls that had a plan and Tom was one of those guys that attached themselves to girls with plans and tried their best to foul them up. "Maybe she'll finally see the light and be done with him for once and for all."
"You think she'll do it? Then I can finally put my master plan into place and catch the attention of those glorious blue eyes!"
Ginny giggled and rolled her eyes. Including Tom, Ben had a crush on about ten other guys at school and talked about them constantly, bemoaning their straightness. When she pointed out that they were in the middle of San Francisco and that he was spoiled for choice, he frowned at her. "Ginny, the gays around here are some thirsty bitches and hardly a challenge." They worked in companionable silence for a while and she gradually became aware of her stomach growling. As she was fishing around in her bag for the packet of almonds she knew was in there, she heard Ben gasp.
"I think I've just seen my future husband," Ben breathed, eyes riveted to the entrance of the reading room.
"Oh?" Ginny said as she turned around to see who had captured her friend's attention. "Oh!" Harry stood in the doorway, scanning the room for her. Still dressed in his work clothes with his satchel slung across his chest, Ginny surmised that he'd come straight from St Ambrose's and waved, catching his attention.
"Ginny! You know him?"
Ginny turned to look at Ben and suppressed the urge to laugh at Ben's shocked face. "Yes, I do. That's Harry. I've told you about him."
Ben's eyes went completely round. "That's Harry? When you said your boyfriend's name was Harry, I envisioned one of those little hipster nerdy guys that like to be called Harry ironically. I definitely did not envision…that," he said, gesturing to the approaching Harry. "You really need to be more descriptive."
"Oh yes. He grew up very well." Ginny moved her book bag off of the chair next to her and Harry sat down, kissing her on the cheek. "Hello, love," Ginny said, ignoring the high-pitched squeak emanating from Ben's position. "Surprised to see you here! How did you find me?"
"I have my ways," Harry said with a smile. "Are you going to introduce me to your friend?"
Ginny looked over at Ben, who was looking at Harry with stars in his eyes. "Harry, this is Ben Frye. Ben, this is Harry Potter."
Ben extended his hand in front of Ginny to Harry and they shook hands. "So nice to meet you, Harry. I haven't heard nearly enough about you," he said, cutting his eyes at Ginny.
"Oh, so you're Ben!" Harry smiled warmly at him and Ginny felt Ben kick her under the table. "Ginny's always telling me something you said. I hear you know all of the best gossip."
"I apparently don't know everything," Ben murmured, glaring obviously at Ginny, delivering another kick to her abused shin.
Kicking him back, Ginny turned to Harry. "What brings you here?"
"I got hung up at work and I thought you might be hungry. Decided I'd treat my girl to a night out, yeah?"
"That sounds wonderful. My brain is so tired I don't think I could remember how to fry an egg." Ginny started packing up her books and papers, glancing over at Ben who was doing his best to stare at Harry and not look like it.
Casting a glance at Ben, Harry stood up. "I'll meet you outside, okay? Ben, really good meeting you. I'm sure we'll see each other again."
Once Harry was out of earshot, Ben leaned in close to Ginny. "How dare you keep that from me?" he hissed.
"Keep what? It's just Harry! I've known him since I was eleven."
Ben sighed heavily and shook his head. "Why do all of the good ones have to be taken?"
Ginny patted his hand in sympathy. "Poor Ben. Look, I'll answer any questions you want tomorrow, okay?"
"Anything?"
"Anything within reason," Ginny amended. "See you tomorrow!"
Outside she found Harry leaning against the library steps railing, obviously deep in thought. "Hey, you," Ginny murmured, giving him a proper greeting-kiss.
"Hey. Ready to go?"
"Yes, I'm famished! Where are you parked?"
"I didn't drive today. What do you feel like for dinner?"
"Anything but Chinese!" Living above a Chinese takeaway had its advantages and disadvantages, Ginny mused as they walked toward a nearby stand of trees to Apparate. "Surprise me."
"Feeling posh?"
Ginny looked down at her ratty jumper and jeans. "Well, you're dressed better than I am, but no, not in a posh mood."
"I think I know just the place then." Harry grabbed her hand and Ginny felt the split-second squeeze of nothing followed by her eardrums popping as they emerged into a semi-dark alleyway. Stepping out, Ginny saw they were in North Beach.
"Oh Italian sounds lovely," Ginny said, smiling up at Harry. "It's like you read my mind."
"I did study Legilimancy, you know." Harry gave her a smug look.
"Hmph. Like you need to read my mind to know I'm always up for Italian." A few minutes later, they were situated in a booth at one of their favorite tiny places that was ignored by tourists, both magical and Muggle alike. Harry sat with his back to the wall and an eye on the main entrance.
"Expecting trouble?" Ginny asked casually as she dipped a piece of bread in olive oil. Their waitress set a glass of the house red in front of each of them and she watched Harry take a long drink. Something was up.
Harry took his eyes off the door for a moment to look at her. "No, why?"
"You've got something on your mind and you're watching that door like a hawk. What's going on?"
Harry sighed and grabbed a piece of bread out of the basket. "I had a conversation with Artemis after work."
"Oh? Is he not happy with your performance? Have there been complaints from the students or parents?"
"I wish it were that simple. No, he is insisting that we go to Jacob Green's Halloween party." Moodily shredding the bread into pieces on his plate, Harry dipped the crust in the oil and ate it.
Ginny frowned. "Why would he care if you go to the party or not? How does he even know you were invited?"
"You remember when he introduced us at the back to school reception, talking about what a huge donor Green is to the school. I'm sure that smarmy bastard had told everyone I was on the list and he wasn't too pleased when I sent our refusal." Another piece of bread was steadily being ripped apart. "I got the idea that Artemis had gotten an earful from him."
"Did you tell him that you don't do Halloween? Doesn't everyone know why?" Ginny took a sip of her own wine, watching Harry over the rim of the glass.
Shrugging, Harry finally shoved the bread plate out of the way. "I told him that I was sorry, but I don't celebrate Halloween. I didn't feel the need to trot out the Dark Lord and dead parents story, you know?" Picking up his own wineglass, Harry stared at it moodily before taking another drink.
"Well what did he say?"
"He just kind of said that was all in the past and there are no dark lords here and wasn't it time I just let all of that go? And then he reminded me how much money Green had donated to the school over the years."
"God, what is it with Americans and money?"
"I dunno." Harry shook his head and leaned back against the seat, closing his eyes and taking off his glasses.
"What are you going to do?" Ginny hadn't seen Harry this upset in a long time and certainly not since relocating to California.
"I'll have to go. I can't see a graceful way to get out of it." He opened his eyes and looked at Ginny, giving her a small smile. "We'll go and leave early. Put in an appearance and then get out of there."
Ginny took one of Harry's hands in hers and squeezed. "You could just explain—"
"No. I'm not going to waste my breath. I don't really have a choice, yeah? I just need to suck it up and do my duty." Harry looked at a painting of a ruined tower next to their booth. "Still fucking 'Famous Harry Potter'," he muttered.
"Harry, that's enough," Ginny said gently. "We'll get through it." She was rewarded by a nod and smile from Harry as he squeezed her hand back. They sat quietly, each lost in their own thoughts until the runner came with their dinner, which served to brighten the mood quite a bit.
"Feeling better?" Ginny asked as Harry plowed through his pasta.
"Yeah, sorry about that. I wanted to take you out for a nice evening and give you a break from your studying. Didn't mean to be such a prat."
"It's all right. I understand." They were quiet for a moment, focusing on their dinners when Ginny said with an impish smile, "Besides, if anyone's fucking Famous Harry Potter, it'd better be me."
"Too right." Harry flashed her a grin and she was relieved to see that he did seem to be in better spirits after all. "So that was Ben, huh?"
"Yes. He's a real sweetheart. He wants to be a pediatric surgeon. Kids love him." Ginny savored her chicken parmesan which was definitely her favorite dish at this restaurant. "Does he have your approval? Can we still be friends?"
Harry looked at her with a furrowed brow. "Gin, you know you can be friends with whomever you want. I don't control you."
"Harry, I know you don't. That's not what I'm trying to say. Some blokes don't like when their girls are friends with other blokes and we've never..." she said, trailing off, not really too sure what she was trying to say. She'd meant her comment as a tease, but Harry seemed to be taking it very seriously.
Harry shook his head. "I don't...I mean..." He stopped and took a deep breath and another sip of wine. "Listen, I was just such a twat when you and that Hudson got together and I treated you so terribly. I want you to know that you don't need to worry about who you're friends with, all right?"
Ginny was shocked to hear that Harry was still troubled by his poor reaction to the news that she was seeing fellow Healer Matthew Hudson, but not altogether surprised. He carried those sorts of things with him for a very long time. "Honestly Harry, the thought never even crossed my mind. It was a joke, okay?"
"Yeah, all right," he said moodily and picked at the remnants of his dinner.
"Besides, Ben is as gay as they come. He about fell off his chair when you walked into the library."
"Yeah? I could tell something was up with him the way he was looking at me."
"Oh yes. He accused me of hiding you from him."
"He did, did he?" A slow smile spread across his face he chuckled. "Well, we might have to invite him over to the flat for some Chinese."
"So you can parade yourself around? Honestly, you're the worst."
Harry signaled for coffee and dessert and gave a mock hurt expression. "I can't believe you would say that. I never 'parade myself around'."
"Oh, it's cute that you think that. What about that time when we were all stuck at Grimmauld Place? I distinctly remember several times when you took your sweet time walking from the loo to your room in nothing but a towel. Your hair all dripping wet."
"Well, the shower was all the way at the other end of the hall."
"And then back at school you'd come in all sweaty from Quidditch practice and spread yourself all over an armchair in the common room."
"That's hardly parading," Harry protested mildly as he doctored his coffee. Ginny attended to her own and took a sip. "You're making as if I was constantly walking around Hogwarts half-naked."
"If you had done that, then that would have driven all of the girls mad, instead of only most." Their spumoni came and Ginny scooped out a bite, savoring the sweetness against the bitter coffee.
Harry quirked an eyebrow at her. "Most?" he asked around a bite of ice cream.
"Well, maybe most is an overstatement. Certainly several. Why do you think the DA was as popular as it was?" Ginny giggled at seeing Harry take pause at that.
"I thought everyone was there to learn how to defend themselves against Death Eaters," he said introspectively, licking more ice cream off the back of the spoon.
"I definitely was," Ginny nodded as she finished the dessert.
"So you weren't there, hoping to catch my eye?" Harry leaned forward with a grin. "Hoping that I'd notice you, my best friend's little sister?"
Ginny snorted. "Oh please. I was going round with Michael, wasn't I?"
"Michael who?"
"Michael Corner. Well, until we beat Ravenclaw so terribly and he couldn't get out of his sulk, anyway."
"And then you moved on to Dean."
"What are we doing here? Rehashing over my past love life?" Ginny leaned forward as well. "I think we were talking about you swanning all over Grimmauld Place and the Gryffindor common room."
"But this is so much more interesting." Harry's green eyes glittered in the candlelight and Ginny felt a swooping sensation in her stomach.
"It can't be as interesting as finding out which girls had crushes on you in school."
Harry waved his hand dismissively. "That's old news."
"Is it? I guarantee I know of at least one that would surprise you," Ginny said with a challenge in her voice.
"I bet I already know who you're going to say," Harry said smugly, looking at her over his coffee cup.
"Oh you don't know this one."
"Who was it then?"
"Morag MacDougal," Ginny said, grinning in satisfaction at Harry's open-mouthed expression.
"Wait, who?" She could almost see Harry flipping through index cards in his head, looking for this girl. "Describe her."
"Your year, Ravenclaw. Started out pudgy but lost weight before fifth year and got quite pretty. Brown hair, blue eyes." The index cards were slowing down and Harry let out a sigh.
"Yes, I remember her now. She came to the DA and always needed extra help, yeah?" Harry shook his head. "I always thought that was odd for a Ravenclaw. How did you find out?"
"The girls toilet is always gossip Ground Zero. I was in a stall one day when she came in with a couple of friends and they started talking about boys they fancied. You were top of her list." Ginny sat back in satisfaction. "There. I surprised you."
"You did indeed. I haven't thought of her in years. I wonder how she turned out?" Harry said musingly before looking back at Ginny. "Do all girls have a list?" Ginny nodded and he gave her his most winning smile. "Where was I on your list?"
"I think we've already established that you were below Michael and Dean," Ginny said, fixing him with a saucy look.
"Cheeky." Harry paid the check and Ginny nodded that she was ready to go. She heaved her book bag up on her shoulder and followed Harry out of the restaurant into the cool night. She took the peppermint he dug out of the stash in his pocket, choosing to suck on it slowly rather than crunch into it right away like she usually did.
Holding Harry's hand, they ambled toward the approved Apparition point for the neighborhood, passing several storefronts that were already decorated for the upcoming holiday. She noticed his eyes lingering on the jack o'lanterns, black cats and ridiculous witches on terrible broomsticks. Even when they were at Hogwarts the holiday had been bittersweet for Harry and he usually just let it pass unmentioned. Here though, everyone was crazy for Halloween and bought massive bags of candy to give to costumed children and there was just no getting away from it. And now this Halloween party.
"All right, Harry?" Ginny asked softly as they turned into the darkened alley.
"Yeah. Just thinking. Ready?" Ginny nodded and held tight to his arm as he Disapparated them in the silent Auror fashion. She was still miffed that he refused to teach her the way of it.
Once back in the flat, Ginny reluctantly turned her thoughts to her schoolwork. She had a biochemistry lab report due in the morning and still had to manage to fit in a couple of chapters' worth of reading for study group in the afternoon. She saw Harry had his satchel open and was bringing out a large stack of papers.
Arranging herself on the bed with her books and papers arrayed around her, she tried to lose herself in the work, but Harry was fidgeting on the sofa and distracting her. She watched out of the corner of her eye as he tried to focus on the student papers and failed, his gaze drifting to look out of the windows that faced the street. He sighed and mumbled to himself, shifting around and now sat with his legs crossed which only lasted for about thirty seconds before he shifted again and put both feet flat on the floor. Ginny was about to say something when Harry finally stood up, shoving the papers back into his satchel.
"I'm going for a run." Relieved that he was finally going to find an outlet for his nervous energy, Ginny nodded and watched as he quickly changed into his running tights and a light tee shirt. "You need anything while I'm out?" he asked, hopping on one foot as he tied a running shoe.
"No. Go on and get your busy head right." Harry bent over to kiss her and before she knew it he was out the door and she could hear his hurried steps on stairs outside. She shook her head and focused again on her lab report, hoping he'd work out what was bothering him.
Harry ran, the sound of his footsteps on the pavement rhythmic and soothing in the brisk nighttime air. He wanted to set a faster, more punishing pace, but with the run earlier in the day, he knew that would not end well so he forced himself to keep to a fast jog, trying to look like an ordinary man out for an ordinary evening run and not like someone desperately trying to run away from his own ghosts.
Damn Artemis and damn Jacob Green, he thought, making a right turn at the bottom of the hill. Bloody Americans and their bloody parties. Why can't they just leave me the hell alone? Even as he thought it, he knew why. He was still famous Harry Potter, savior of the Wizarding World and even though he wasn't quite the household name here as he was back home, his name still carried weight and prestige and having him at any function was guaranteed to catch a write up in the local Wizarding rag.
As Artemis had pointed out to him, Jacob Green had a lot of money to spread around and the headmaster of St Ambrose's had a vested interest in encouraging Mr Green to spread as much of it around the school as he could. "I'm sure you can appreciate how expensive operations are in this part of the country," Artemis had said when Harry had done his usual post-run cruise through the office. "We can't expect parents to shoulder all of the burden, especially when it comes to our less well-to-do families."
"Sir, I can definitely appreciate that and I'm very grateful for how generous Mr Green has been to this school in establishing scholarships and upgrading the library, but—"
"And I think it would be only right to show your appreciation by taking Jacob up on his invitation," Artemis said, cutting Harry off. He gave him a fatherly look and Harry was forcibly reminded of Rufus Scrimgeour. "Think of it as an opportunity to be introduced to the who's who of the Bay Area Wizarding community."
Harry had to give it one more try. "Artemis, I'm sure you're aware of what happened to my family on Halloween?"
Artemis waved his hand dismissively, the motion almost making Harry's blood boil. "Yes, that's all in the history books and that's just what it is, Harry, history. It's over and done. Time to move on, don't you think?"
Stifling the urge to choke the life out of the man, Harry took a deep breath and counted to ten before allowing himself to speak. He could see now that there was no way he was going to get out of this and it would only get worse if he let it go on and he nodded. "Okay. I'll message him and let him know I'll be accepting his invitation."
"Excellent!" Artemis smiled and shook Harry's hand companionably. "I think you'll find the Wizarding crowd around here very interesting, Harry."
"I can't wait," Harry said under his breath to the headmaster's back.
Now, running along the dimly lit streets, Harry felt his upset rise again and he thought about just leaving and packing in the teaching business. This thought lasted for about half a second before he shook his head and ran harder, glancing to each side as he darted across a deserted street. I can't do that. Then what would I do? Sit around the flat all day, getting fat? Besides, it wouldn't be fair to the kids. He thought back to the revolving door of Defense Against the Dark Arts instructors he'd been treated to and how crushed he was when Remus hadn't been able to return for a second year.
As he ran and thought, Harry realized that he actually loved teaching. He'd loved being an Auror as well, at least in the beginning, but this was different. He'd had an inkling when he'd led the DA sessions in the Room of Requirement, but now he thought he finally had the whole picture. Leading his students in drills, reading over their assignments and putting up with their mischief was all worth it when he saw the aha moment dawn in their eyes.
It's just like Hermione said it would be, he thought ruefully, I'll never tell her that though. I'd never hear the end of it. He checked his watch and saw he'd already been out for half an hour and he slowed down, taking stock of his surroundings. He was still getting to know the City and he found he was in an unfamiliar area that looked a bit run down, but still all right. He spied a little shop half a block away and jogged toward it, intent on getting a bottle of water.
The small shop was crowded with just about everything residents of the neighborhood could possibly need and was deserted except for the man at the counter idly watching television news in a language Harry didn't recognize right away. He went to the wall of coolers at the rear and grabbed a bottle of water, fishing in his shoe for the dollar bills he kept stashed in there for times such as this. Stepping outside, he uncapped the water and quickly drank about half of it, noticing an older man on the opposite corner looking straight at him.
Wiping his mouth, Harry studied the man without appearing to. He looked to be in his 60s with long white hair and a long white beard, both clean and well-kept. He was dressed like a lot of people out here were in jeans and a fleece jacket and was obviously out to walk his dog. From this distance he couldn't tell eye color or jewelry, but there was something about him that made Harry think Wizard. Just as he raised the bottle to finish the water, the man saluted him and walked away, tugging on the dog's leash.
That was weird, Harry thought, throwing the empty water bottle in the bin. It was the first time he'd been recognized out on the street since relocating. I guess I'm not as under the radar as I thought I was. Mentally shaking himself, he thought about just Disapparating back to the flat but decided to run back instead, still feeling the need to clear his head. He set a faster pace back to the flat and was pounding up the steps in what seemed like no time at all.
Ginny was still on the bed, papers and books scattered around while she typed in her hunt and peck fashion on her computer. She looked up and smiled at him when he came into the flat and started stretching. "Good run?" she asked.
"Yeah, pretty good," he answered, bending one leg over the other in his favorite stretch. He got another glass of water and drank it down. "I think I was recognized."
"You were? Where? By who?"
"Outside a little shop where I stopped for water by some old bloke out walking his dog." Harry took off his sweaty tee shirt and tossed it toward the bathroom door.
"How do you know you he recognized you?"
"He stood there staring and me and then he saluted and walked off." Harry shrugged. "I dunno, maybe people just go around saluting people here, but I could tell he was a wizard."
Ginny frowned as he kicked off his shoes and peeled off his tights. "That's weird. How did he recognize you, I wonder?"
"Dunno. I figure he was too far away to see my scar. I guess word's gotten around." Harry blew out a long, frustrated breath and swept his hair back with both hands. "Right. I'm going to shower and then I have a pile of work to do," he said firmly. "And then we're going to shag and I am going to sleep."
"Oh we are? So nice of you to fit me into your evening plans," Ginny said wryly, raising her face to receive Harry's lingering kiss.
In the shower, Harry let the hot water needle his shoulders and scalp and tried to let the day's frustrations flow down the drain with the water. They don't know. They can't know, he thought. I wanted to be in a place where everyone didn't know my history and I can't complain now, that's for damn sure. The water was beginning to cool and Harry quickly washed his hair and scrubbed down. Dry again, he slipped on a pair of trackies and decided the night was cool enough for a fire.
Take two. He brought out the stack of essays from his Sophomore class on Shielding Charms, settled his glasses on his nose and started reading. His mind felt much calmer with the run and the shower and he soon fell into the work, reading, writing comments and notes in the margins and assigning point values to the students' work. He was getting a reputation as a tough grader and he'd noticed the uptick in quality over the last couple of weeks.
Gradually he became aware of Ginny packing up her papers, books and computer. "All done?" he asked, leafing through the essays he had left. Only a few. I can do those during lunch tomorrow. "What time is it?"
"After eleven," Ginny said with a yawn. She stood up and stretched, making the bottom of her shirt ride up, exposing a section of pale, freckled skin. Harry took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes, gathering up his own papers. The fire in the hearth had burned down to embers, casting a dim glow when Ginny shut off the lamps.
Sinking down into the bed with a groan, Harry gathered Ginny close and breathed deep, inhaling the sweet scent of her shampoo. "Thank you," he said, voice muffled by her hair.
"For what?"
"For putting up with me."
"Well, that is a pretty big job. Nice to know I'm appreciated." Ginny said, kissing him playfully on his collarbone and making his stomach tremble.
Harry kissed her temple, moving down to her cheek and finally her lips, feeling a flash of heat at her soft sigh as he pushed his tongue into her willing mouth. He loved kissing her and had told her quite honestly that she was the best kisser he'd ever encountered, something he knew pleased her immensely. He continued downward, kissing her where her jaw met her neck and nipping at her earlobe. "Harry," she said breathlessly.
"Mmm?" he moved further down, following the pulsing vein that ran down the side of her neck, feeling her heartbeat on his lips. She'd told him the name of that vein several times, but he could never remember what it was called.
"I have an idea."
Harry stopped kissing her and looked at her. The dim firelight made red sparks in her hair and her eyes were very bright. "You what?"
"I have an idea. For that stupid Halloween party."
"Gin. Do you mean to tell me that while I've been kissing you, you've been thinking about that sodding party?"
"Only this one thing," she said sheepishly. "I'm multitasking. Anyway, I had an idea about costumes."
"I am about to shag your brains out and you're thinking about costumes for a party neither one of us really wants to go to?" Harry flopped on his back next to her. "I know you won't give it up, so let's hear it."
Ginny sat up eagerly and pushed her hair back behind her ears. "Okay, you know that movie we watched last week? The Princess Bride?" Harry nodded. They had both enjoyed it a lot and had spent the next couple of days repeating their favorite lines to each other and laughing hysterically. "Well, how about if you dress as Dread Pirate Roberts and I'll be Princess Buttercup!"
Harry rolled his eyes and groaned. "Really, Gin? That's what you've been thinking about this whole time?"
"You're not hearing me out. Listen, if you dress as Dread Pirate Roberts, you'll get to wear a mask and even though you'll have to go to this party, no one will get to see your face."
"Oh. Oh my love, you are devious!" The thought of being able to stick it to Jacob Green and obey the letter of the law and not the spirit had an enormous appeal to Harry. He pulled Ginny down on top of him and held her face in his hands, kissing her on the forehead, tip of her nose and lips. "You are brilliant," he whispered.
"I know," she whispered back before kissing him deeply and tracing her own path down his neck, swirling her tongue in the hollow of his throat and making him gasp. Her hand traced a line down his chest and stomach and she slipped it into his tracksuit bottoms, squeezing the head of his cock lightly. "Now," she whispered against his lips, "what do you say we put that to good use?"
Harry felt his insides tremble and jump at the feeling of her hand on his cock and her soft breath against his lips as he captured her mouth with his. "As you wish."