A/N I was at summer camp so sorry I didn't warn you guys

Amy I'll ask my uncle these questions because he owns the story. I think with a basic education by Harry or Hermione anyone could teach Muggle Studies, though I do not know why he made Mrs. Weasly Head of Gryffindor. I'll ask him that when I meet him next.


CHAPTER SEVEN

SECRET IN HOGSMEADE

Harry talked to Luna and Neville on Sunday and they were indeed more than willing to help out teaching basic defensive spells to the first years. At seven o'clock Monday evening, Harry and Ron met up with Neville and swung by the Ravenclaw common room to pick up Luna. When they entered the Great Hall, they noticed all the long dining tables were gone, leaving a huge amount of open space for the class. The first years all had their wands out. Harry wondered if they were more excited because they were all going to get a chance to do some actual magic, or because they were going to get to meet a 'celebrity'. Harry's fears were confirmed as he heard excited whispering as they entered the room.

"That's him!"

"Do you think he'll show us how he killed You-Know-Who?"

"He's cute!"

"Think he can take Professor Weasley?"

Mrs. Weasley waited for the hall to quiet down, then started to make introductions.

"I thought that all of you would enjoy a chance to practice some defensive spells, so I brought in some older students who have a wealth of experience teaching, learning and using them. May I present to you a sixth year Ravenclaw, Miss Luna Lovegood, as well as three seventh year Gryffindors, Mr. Neville Longbottom, Mr. Ron Weasley and Mr. Harry Potter."

Professor Weasley waited for the applause to die down before continuing.

"Mr. Potter, I turn the class over to you."

"Right," said Harry, after Mrs. Weasley had sat down. "I was thinking, the first thing I would like to show you is Expelliarmus, the disarming charm. What I like about it is that it is purely a defensive spell. You should not be able to harm anyone using it."

"So what's the point?" asked a young Hufflepuff named Julia Whitby.

"The point is, Expelliarmus can be used to knock the wand out of your opponent's hand. Without their wand, they are no longer an immediate threat to you. Expelliarmus can also work to block your opponent's spells. I used this spell to defeat Lord Voldemort."

There was a gasp from all the first years, then silence until Patricia Brocklehorst spoke up.

"How did a mere disabling charm defeat You-Know-Who?"

"Voldemort tried to hit me with a killing curse. My Expelliarmus charm not only blocked his curse, but caused his curse to rebound back onto himself. Therefore, you could say he killed himself."

This caused lots of murmuring amongst the students, which took a few minutes to die down. Finally, Harry was able to be heard again.

"Neville, why don't you come up here next to me. Now, Ron will use this charm to disarm me, then Luna will do the same thing to Neville. Go ahead, Ron."

Ron seemed to like the idea of getting to go first and getting to hit Harry with a spell. Ron faced Harry and bowed deeply. Then he raised his wand in front of him. He said with a flourish, "On the count of three, I will disarm you, Harry Potter."

"One, two, three. Expelliarmus!"

A dazzling flash of scarlet light came out of Ron's wand and hit Harry in the chest. Harry's wand flew out of his hand, and Harry was blasted backwards several feet, landing on the floor with a loud thump.

"Notice how my wand was blown out of my hand," said Harry from the floor. "When you first try this, this is the most you can realistically hope for. The part where your opponent gets blasted off his feet will probably take a lot of practice to achieve. Luna, you're up!"

Luna stepped up and gave Neville a small bow. Her Expelliarmus charm both blew Neville's wand out of his hand and sent him flying until he landed on Harry. A couple of the first years brought Harry and Neville back their wands as they slowly got to their feet.

"What do you think, Harry?" asked Neville. "Turnabout is fair play?"

They shouted together "Expelliarmus!" The flashes of light from their wands lit up the hall, and Ron and Luna lay laughing, wandless, on the floor several feet behind where they had just been standing.

"Right," said Harry. "We've had our fun. Now it is time for you to form pairs and try it yourself. Let's have one line right here and another line over there. Professor Weasley, can we get some cushions behind everyone just in case someone gets the hang of it right away?"

Mrs. Weasley summoned enough cushions to place behind all of the students, then Harry turned them loose. He and Professor Weasley walked behind one row of students to help them out, while Ron, Neville and Luna walked behind and helped the other row of students.

The room was full of shouts of "Expelliarmus!" Flashes of light filled the hall and occasionally a wand would fly in the air followed by a shout of "I did it!" Once, while Neville was trying to help one student, a stray spell hit him in the back, knocking him into that student while his wand flew into Grover Duncan's ear.

Under the tutelage of Professor Weasley and the four older students, the first years started having more success. Soon wands were flying out of target's hands with regularity, and even a few students were being forced backwards onto the cushions waiting behind them. When the time came to end the class, Professor Weasley had a hard time getting the student's attention. The first years were having so much fun doing actual spells, and doing so successfully, that it was hard to get them to stop. Finally, Professor Weasley got the class settled down.

"Well, that was certainly a productive class! We will be continuing to practice this occasionally in your regularly scheduled Defense Against the Dark Arts classes. For now, it is time for you to all return to your common rooms."

As the students were leaving, Mrs. Weasley called over Harry, Ron, Neville and Luna.

"You four are natural teachers. Ginny had told me how much she and others had learned in your secret Dumbledore's Army classes two years ago. Now I believe her. I think the four of you need to consider the possibilities of becoming teachers when you choose your careers."

Ron and Luna looked doubtful while Harry was pretty much set on the idea of being an Auror. Neville, however, looked to be considering the idea deeply, as Mrs. Weasley continued.

"Can I count on the four of you again next week for the second year students?"

They are assured her they would be back and took off for their own dorms to catch up on their own homework.

"That was quite enjoyable, don't you think?" asked Luna.

"Absolutely," said Ron, "but I don't think I want to teach little midgets every day the rest of my life. How does the thought of being a teacherstrike you, Harry?"

"Nah, I think I still want to try to be an Auror. What are your thoughts, Neville?"

"Professor Sprout keeps telling me I'd make a good teacher, too. I think I am going to look into it."

By then, it was time for Luna to continue on to the Ravenclaw room while the three Gryffindor's approached the Fat Lady.

"Viriliter age," said Neville, and the portrait swung open to let them in.

One nice thing about Harry's fame was that the other Gryffindors left him a regular spot near the fireplace in the common room. Though the fire was seldom lit in the summer, Harry still enjoyed this location in the common room the best. He strolled over to his seat to join Ginny who was already awaiting him there.

"Harry, did you see the bulletin board?" she asked. "We are allowed to go into Hogsmeade this Sunday. Shall we make it a date?"

For some reason Harry still felt guilty talking like this with Ron around. He glanced over his shoulder to where Hermione was helping Ron with his homework.

"Don't look at me like that, you git!" exclaimed Ron. "I'm not in charge of what Ginny does. At least, that's what she says."

"About time you realized that, big brother," proclaimed Ginny.

Harry felt like he had finally been given the full green light. It turned out that it had been a very good day all around.

Time passed quickly throughout the rest of the week. Saturday morning arrived, and with it came the team's first Quidditch practice. Ron was in excellent form, stopping almost everything sent his way. So much so that he was starting to get cocky in the goal. Ginny noticed and took over taking shots at him. Neither one could get an advantage, as Ron blocked about half and about half got by him. Ron and Ginny were developing a strong intra-team rivalry; tense, but friendly.

The rest of the team was looking good, also. While Chasers Dean Thomas and Demelza Robins did not show Ginny's level of talent, they were solid and were not making mistakes. The same could be said for Beater Jimmy Peakes. The other Beater, Euan Abercromby, was getting better as the practice went on, still showing flashes of real talent, but also making fewer and fewer mistakes.

Harry hated to admit it, but the weakest position on the team at the moment seemed to be Seeker. Harry had barely flown on a broomstick in the past year, and his rustiness showed. But even he was flying a lot better by the end of practice. The team was loose and confident by the end of the morning. They were going to be a tough team to beat this summer.

Sunday was the trip to Hogsmeade. Excited students gathered at the entrance hall, waiting for Filch to check if they had permission to go and to warn them that he would be confiscating anything they tried to bring back from Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Harry and Ginny were some of the last to leave, and Harry noticed he did not see Ron and Hermione.

"Hermione and I talked it over last night, and decided today would be a day for couples, instead of the usual gang of four," smiled Ginny. "Those two were at the front of the line, so they should get to town well ahead of us."

After getting a stern talking to from Filch (probably because Ginny was a Weasley, since Harry didn't think Filch knew that he was a part owner of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes), they set off across the grounds and into Hogsmeade. Harry enjoyed getting a chance to see the village alive and jumping again, as opposed to a few months ago when it was filled with Death Eaters and dementors. He had bad memories of that last visit, from almost getting caught by Death Eaters to watching Voldemort have his snake Nagini murder Professor Snape in the Shrieking Shack.

"Well, did you and Hermione come up with our schedule last night, too?"

"Actually, we did," replied Ginny with a grin. "I thought we'd start out with an early lunch at the Hog's Head, then head over to Honeydukes for dessert and some sweets to bring back to Hogwarts."

"You don't want to go to Madam Puddifoot's?"

"Maybe later," grinned Ginny. "We'll let Ron suffer there first."

Harry and Ginny wandered over to the Hog's Head. It was a small bar, off the main road of the village, with a battered wooden sign over the door. It consisted of one small dirty room, and a set of customers who apparently liked to keep their identities as hidden as they kept their faces. However, the barman was a familiar, welcome sight.

"Aberforth!" cried Harry. "It is great to see you again. How's business?"

"Still trying to recover from all the free food I gave that Longbottom boy and all his friends last year. It just about used up all the gold Albus left me to look after the lot of you, that did. So, what can I get you?"

"How about two butterbeers and a couple of sandwiches, please?"

Aberforth pulled out two dusty bottles and went to the back to get the sandwiches. Ginny spent the time telling Harry stories about her rulebreaking activities while Snape had been in charge at Hogwarts. When Aberforth returned with their lunch, Neville came in the door.

"Hey, Neville, over here," called Ginny.

Neville pulled up a chair and asked Aberforth for his usual lunch.

"Your usual?" asked Harry.

"Yeah, I came in here for lunch every day before the summer term started. I'm trying to pay back Aberforth a little for all the help he recently gave us."

With Neville now there, he and Ginny were able to tell some stories of their activities together, and Neville was able to fill in Ginny about some events that happened after she did not return to school from Easter break. After about an hour had passed, they said their goodbyes to Neville and left for Honeydukes.

It had been over a year since Harry had been in Honeydukes, and he realized he had missed the snack cart on the Hogwarts Express this year also. Suddenly, Harry's sweet tooth came out, and cravings for sugary treats overcame him. Harry and Ginny each picked out a few chocolates for their after lunch dessert, then Harry started selecting snacks to take back to Hogwarts. He got a bag of Every Flavor Beans and another of Fizzing Whizbees. When he started checking out the chunks of creamy nougat, Ginny had to drag him away.

"I don't want you to become my fat boyfriend. You keep that up and you're going to start looking like that cousin of yours."

"Oh yeah? Well, why don't you tell me what kind of boyfriend you want to have?"

"If you haven't figured that out by now, Harry Potter, you're not as bright as people give you credit for."

Ginny flashed Harry a sly grin and led him out of the store. They walked by the Shrieking Shack and Harry told Ginny about how his dad, Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew learned to transfigure themselves into animals so that they could safely stay with Remus Lupin there when he would turn into a werewolf every full moon. Then he told her what it was like to be watching from the secret passageway as Snape was murdered. Sensing that he had really ruined what had been a happy mood so far in the day, Harry suggested they move on and visit Weasley's Wizard Wheezes.

When they got to the joke shop, they found a large percentage of their classmates already in the packed store. George and Lee were running like madmen trying to keep up with all the business. With all the students so busy with classes, and with the real life threats from Voldemort and the Death Eaters gone, good old fashioned practical jokes were making a big comeback at Hogwarts.

The Ravenclaw duo of Duncan Inglebee and Jason Samuels seemed to be the closest current thing to the Weasley twins at Hogwarts. Indeed, Harry saw them in the far corner loading up on Decoy Detonators, Dungbombs and Ton-Tongued Toffees. Ginny was looking at the bruise removal cream, commenting that Harry should get some so that he didn't look so bad after their Quidditch matches. As Harry was looking over the Muggle magic tricks, George came up from behind.

"About time the other owner showed up. Here to give us a hand, Harry?"

"I wasn't planning on it. With both you and Lee here, who's watching the store in Diagon Alley?"

"Verity is there today. She shouldn't be too busy on a Sunday with the lot of you guys in school. We're going to have to hire extra help, though. The three of us are putting in heavy hours, and Lee has to get his wireless radio station up and running before your first Quidditch match."

Lee came walking by with a huge smile on his face.

"If I can't get away from these stores, I'll have to hire Luna Lovegood to broadcast the matches. Though she might be a laugh for a little color commentary, I don't think I want her running my initial broadcast."

"Sounds like you guys need a business manager," said Ginny. "You need someone to free Lee up to do work on his wireless broadcasts and George to develop new product, while the manager deals with the money and with employees."

"That's what we need," agreed George. "Know anyone like that?"

"Hmmm, maybe," whispered Ginny. "How's the business doing?"

"Really good right now," admitted George, "but I'm a little worried about the immediate future. We spent all last year working on those shield products for the Ministry and other adult users. They made us a good profit, but those sales have dried up, thanks to you, Harry. Most of our original stuff is still selling pretty well with the young-uns, but I haven't come up with anything new for them in a while. And the Skiving Snackboxes and Nosebleed Nougats aren't selling so well now that nobody needs to get out of Snape's classes anymore."

"Plus, Filch is threatening to confiscate any of your products coming back into the castle," added Harry. "That has to hurt sales."

"Harry, Harry, Harry, not to worry. We have that covered. We made deals with some of the local businesses. We can make a bag of dungbombs look like your bag of Every Flavor Beans from Honeydukes or a box of quills from Dervish and Banges. Filch will never know the difference."

George and Lee took off to help other customers. Harry and Ginny worked their way towards the door, stopping several times to talk with classmates who were eyeing their own practical joke purchases. Harry made a mental note to be extra careful around certain classmates during the next few weeks.

As they left the shop, Harry was just telling Ginny what a great day he was having when his girlfriend nudged him and pointed across the road. There was Ron and Hermione. Hermione was leaning her head against Ron's shoulder as they walked. Ron looked less relaxed, as if he was trying to make sure no one saw him being sensitive in public. The two turned into the Three Broomsticks. Harry suggested they go over and join them.

"No, we get to see Ron and Hermione all the time. They seemed pretty happy by themselves, and I'm not really in the mood to see my brother right now. Besides, now is when you have to pay for your good day. I want to spend some time with you at Madam Puddifoot's."

Madam Puddifoot ran a tea shop that mostly catered to couples on these weekends. Harry had been there once before with Cho Chang and that visit had been an unqualified disaster. Something about being in public surrounded by other couples made Harry very uneasy. Not to mention that the lacy, frilly decorations in the place reminded him of Dolores Umbridge's old office. However, Ginny was quite insistent, and Harry had at least learned when it was best not to disagree with her.

They walked down a side road until they reached the small tea shop. There were only a few tables still open, so they took a small table for two by the front window. This relieved Harry, since all the couples who were kissing seemed to be at tables which were in the far back. Harry looked around and saw several familiar faces, including Padma Patil and Michael Corner holding hands just two tables away.

A stout woman who Harry remembered was Madam Puddifoot approached their table.

"What'll you have today, m'dears?"

"A coffee for me," answered Ginny. "Same for you, Harry?"

"Er … yeah," stuttered Harry.

Madam Puddifoot soon returned with two steaming cups of coffee. Without realizing how it had happened, Harry now noticed he was holding Ginny's hand. There was just something about this place, he decided.

"So," said Ginny as it was obvious she was trying not to look Harry in the eye, "have you figured out what you want to do next year?"

"Partially. Ron and Hermione and I are talking about traveling for a bit. Hermione might show us where her family likes to go skiing in France, then we would go to Romania to visit your brother Charlie. Hermione wants to see Victor Krum in Bulgaria, but I don't think Ron is too keen on that idea. Then we'd let Ron show us around Egypt before going to Australia to see Hermione's parents."

A look at Ginny's face told Harry this was not what she had meant by her question. So he decided to continue.

"Minister Shacklebolt said that he would help Ron and I become Aurors, and I'm pretty sure that's what I want to do. I hear there will be a lot of training involved, which should keep me pretty busy next year."

"I meant," said Ginny as she leaned closer over the table towards Harry, "what do you want to do about us next year? You know, I'll be here at Hogwarts all year and you won't be."

One thing about Ginny that Harry always liked was that she was direct and to the point. Harry rarely had to try to figure out what she wanted because she would always tell him. It kept their relationship comfortable. But Harry suddenly felt as though he was being tested, and he had the idea that he did not want to fail this test.

"Well, I … em, I was hoping that you'd, like, want me to come and ... um … you know, meet you here whenever they let you go to Hogsmeade. And maybe your family would let me come and, um, visit whenever you are home for holidays."

Harry thought he saw a smile briefly flash across Ginny's face, but if it did it was immediately replaced by a serious look.

"So, in other words, you're saying we should keep seeing each other as much as possible next year, and not be going out with anyone else?"

Harry thought that of course that's what he wanted. That's what they'd been doing ever since he'd come back to Hogwarts and Voldemort had been defeated. Harry was as happy as he had ever been. He certainly didn't want anything to change.

"That's pretty much what I'm saying. I want to see you as much as possible, and I have no interest in ever seeing anyone else."

Then Harry grew a bit more hesitant.

"Isn't that what you want?"

"Of course that is what I want, silly. It is just that, well, dating only each other, being apart and reserving all the open time we can get for each other, it all sounds a lot like being engaged."

Harry's mind reeled as Ginny was speaking. Ever since Bill and Fleur's wedding last summer, Harry often thought back to how beautiful Ginny looked in her bridesmaid's dress, and he remembered the passion of the kiss he and Ginny had shared on Harry's seventeenth birthday the day before the wedding. He imagined Ginny walking up the aisle to become married to him, with all their family and friends there to watch. He had always known that it was something he eventually wanted, but he suddenly realized that it was the only thing he really desired.

Harry took a deep breath and decided to just say what he was thinking. "It does sound a lot like being engaged. In fact, that sounds like a pretty good idea to me. How does it sound to you?"

It was Ginny's turn to display a bit of surprise. She had planned this entire day, including this conversation, and so far everything had gone as she had expected. She thought she knew how Harry felt about her, but she wanted him to express those feelings out loud so she could know for sure. But she had not planned on hearing what could almost be interpreted as a marriage proposal from him.

"Are you asking what I think you're asking?"

It was Harry's turn to lean in towards Ginny, so that their faces were now only inches apart. He hesitated for just a second, long enough to assure himself that he knew exactly what he was doing.

"I think you and I should spend the rest of our lives together. I think you and I should get married some day. And … I think I need to know if you agree with me."

Harry looked into Ginny's eyes, anxiously awaiting her answer. She was not saying anything, but instead returning Harry's gaze. Then Harry noticed that a smile was slowly growing on Ginny's face. Suddenly, she was kissing him. Harry no longer noticed where he was, nor did he notice who else was in the room. As far as he was concerned, it was just he and Ginny, and all was right in the world. It reminded him so much of the moment they shared on Harry's seventeenth birthday that Harry half expected Ron to interrupt them.

When their lips finally parted, the other sights and sounds of the tea room returned. Most of the other couples in the room were too interested in each other to pay any attention to Harry and Ginny, though Harry did notice Terry Boot was smiling and winking at him.

"So," whispered Harry, "now what?"

"I don't know. I've never gotten engaged before."

"I was wondering what would have happened if Ron had walked in a minute ago. How do you think he will handle the news?"

"I'm not sure, but I can handle Ron. It's Mom I'm worried about."

Ginny leaned back and appeared lost in thought for a moment. When she spoke, it was almost to herself as much as it was to Harry.

"I think it might be best to keep this quiet for now. I don't think either one of us needs to deal with Ron. Dad won't be a problem and Mom will be thrilled to have you in the family, Harry. But she'll keep saying that I am too young to get engaged, and that her baby girl can't be getting married yet. You thought she was wound up for Bill's wedding? Just wait until she hears her only daughter is engaged."

"So how long do you want to keep it a secret? I'm not very good at keeping things quiet, especially from Ron and Hermione."

"I would think until at least sometime in the next school year. That way you'll be out of school and I'll be in my last year. We'll have shown that we're still serious even though we're not together every day like we are now. Plus, if what I think is going to happen …"

Ginny drifted back into thought for a moment before continuing.

"I think we'll know when the time is right. Can you keep it secret for a few months or so?"

"I think so, but like I said, it will be tough to keep it from Ron and Hermione."

"Hermione will probably figure it out anyway. She's pretty amazing at figuring people out that way. I might just go ahead and tell her. After all, she's the one who kept giving me advice on how to get you to be interested in me in the first place. And she won't tell Ron. In fact, she'll enjoy keeping it a secret from him."

It was time for them to be getting back to Hogwarts, so they finished up their coffee, left a sickle and a few knuts for payment, and headed out the door. Terry Boot stopped Harry just outside the door to tease him a bit.

"Is that how you reward all your Quidditch players, Harry? If so, give me some warning so I can make sure I'm not around when you bring your Keeper here."

They walked slowly through the village back towards the Hogwarts grounds, none too anxious for the day to end. Every time he and Ginny looked at each other they broke into instant smiles as they thought of the secret they were keeping. Ginny nudged Harry's side and pointed ahead to where Ron and Hermione were walking. Hermione was still leaning her head on Ron's shoulder, but this time Ron had his arm wrapped around her. Harry was about to chuckle when he noticed that he and Ginny looked exactly the same way. Apparently his best friends also had a good day in Hogsmeade.

As they entered the school the fairy tale day was over and they were back to reality. Filch was waiting for them, anxiously searching everyone who was returning for forbidden Weasley's Wizard Wheezes items. His bad mood indicated that so far he had found none. Leave it to George to have outwitted Filch again.

Next chapter Quidditch! yeah