Written pre-DH, a Christmas fic, in where Ginny has a special present for Harry. A basic PWP in the best sense of the word. ;) It was originally called "Henpecked" but I've since changed it to A Night Out. Cheers!

Harry Potter made his way virtually unnoticed through the evening shoppers of Diagon Alley; everyone appeared too busy to take notice of the young man dressed in a dark Muggle suit, keeping to himself. Of course, it had been a good six years since the fall of Voldemort and life had finally started settling down for the wizarding world. But still, for Harry to be able to walk about in public and not be bothered - that alone was a reason to celebrate.

But he had other things on his mind as he moved quickly in between the late Christmas shoppers, and he had to admit the things on his mind were driving him to a distraction that probably wasn't very safe or healthy. But there was nothing else for it and he hurried his steps. The quicker he reached the Leaky Cauldron, the quicker he could escape out into Muggle London and leave magic behind him.

Harry had one mission tonight and it required magic of another, more intimate kind; he had a date with his wife.

And she'd warned him not to be late.

o-o-o-o-o

"Yes, just this way, Mr Potter. Your wife requested one of our private dining areas."

Harry nodded at the head waiter as he started to lead him through the very busy hotel restaurant. All of this had been Ginny's idea, of course - a night on the town for both of them to enjoy each other. A night away from friends, family…and magic, as Ginny had insisted. They both worked for the Department of Mysteries as Unspeakables and had more than their arms full of strange and mystical things on a day to day basis. Harry could appreciate wanting to get away, especially for Ginny. She'd recently given birth to their first child - well, their first set of children, at any rate - two twin boys that were already proving to live up to the example set by their uncles, Fred and George, at the mere age of six months. Harry tried to help her as much as he could but even he had to admit that Ginny shared the brunt of dealing with the babies.

The waiter knocked gently on the door they'd reached and quickly opened it to reveal an elegantly designed room - done in soft peach and gold tones. They'd added holly and mistletoe to the room to give it a subtle yet festive holiday feel. Ginny was already sitting at the table, and she smirked as she looked at her watch. Harry scowled at her as he tipped the waiter and waited for the man to leave them alone.

He approached the table. "Honestly, Gin, I really tried, but Stubbins wouldn't let me go without showing me something in the Thoughts Undone room and I -"

She held up her hand and shook her head. "I'm too happy to see you to care that you're five minutes and forty seconds late, Harry."

He grinned and nodded at her. "Wow. You look amazing. Is that new?"

Ginny was wearing a red velvet dress that hung low down the middle and looked to taper off fairly high above her knees, from what he could tell. He allowed himself a long ogle at her legs and she smiled as he sat down.

"Yes. And the fact that I'm wearing it means I've finally lost the last of the baby weight, thank you very much."

"Giving birth does have that effect," Harry said dryly as he took in the food already on the table. He reached for a slice of bread, suddenly feeling quite hungry.

Ginny smirked at him and took a sip of what looked like wine. "You know what I mean, Harry. I was afraid I wouldn't actually be able to fit into this gear."

Harry let his eyes run down over her form again and swallowed roughly. "Gin, I hate to break it to you, but you're practically popping out of it now. Please tell me you wore a jacket around you when you came into the restaurant."

"What's the matter love, don't feel quite up to fighting off the Muggles and protecting your wife's honour?"

Harry gave her a wide grin. "Not at all. However, I do hate to think of you catching cold."

Ginny giggled, suddenly seeming quite younger to Harry. He felt the same way and was very pleased they'd decided to do this. He loved the twins, and he loved his job, but he really loved something else more than either of those things, and that was sitting across from him now. He reached out his hand and took a hold of hers, rubbing his thumb across her knuckles.

"Happy Christmas," he said.

Ginny's eyes sparkled as she looked at him. "Oh, not yet, but soon, Harry. Go on, eat up. I want you to have all your strength for the rest of the evening."

Harry grinned and picked up his fork, determined to do as she asked.

o-o-o-o

"And this…this is our room. But just for the evening, so don't get too attached."

"Whoa."

Ginny nodded and moved to the side of the sitting room to open the large, rather thick curtains that blocked their view. Harry gave an appreciative whistle as the city of London came into view before him. He walked to the glass door and opened it, noting that they had a small, private balcony. Ginny came up behind him, and he felt her arms snake around his waist.

"Do I even want to know how much this cost a night?" he asked, turning to look down at her.

She shook her head. "No, and I paid for it with my own money, so don't try to find out either. It's part of my Christmas present to you."

"Gin, I would have been happy with -"

She moved and came around the front of him, silencing him with her finger on his lips. She gave him a stern look.

"We agreed that my present to you would be about me treating us to something extravagant. This night out means a lot to me Harry, so please don't ruin it with what you would have been okay with. I know what you would have accepted; that's not the point."

"What is the point then?" he asked as he pulled her closer to him, wrapping his arms around her and letting his hands rest just above her backside.

"The point is, is that I can afford to set us up in a posh hotel room for a night and have my wicked way with you if I want."

"Oh, silly me," Harry said, smiling. For some reason unbeknownst to him, he knew it mattered a great deal to Ginny that she be able to do this for them, so he didn't say anything else. As long as they had been together she had always tried her best to treat him to something - whether it was making sure he got the bigger piece of treacle tart while they'd been at Hogwarts or at the Burrow, to making sure he was taken care of, even when they had been temporarily broken up during his hunt for the last remaining Horcruxes. He knew some small part of her liked to do these things for him and he was far too wise to her temper to start questioning it now. He did however, wonder why it seemed so important that she spend her own money on this room and not their joint savings, but he didn't want to break the mood with a money argument.

"Anything else I should see in this great expanse of a room?" he whispered now, resting his head on top of hers.

"Oh!" she said, pulling away. "Yes, the bath. You'll never guess what they have in the shower, Harry."

"Soap, perhaps? Tile, taps…a drain?"

She rolled her eyes and then tugged on his hand, leading him back into the room. They walked into the bedroom, where, Harry noted, Ginny had already visited - he spied matching dressing gowns laid across the rather large bed.

"Yes, but look…." she pointed to a large shower stall that was elegantly encased in clear glass and Harry had to admit he was impressed.

"It has a bench," he said as he moved forward, opening the door. There were water sprays at both ends of the shower, which met on a medium-sized marble bench. Ginny and he could take a shower together and not even bump into each other if they wanted. But Harry knew that was something he didn't want to happen; he wanted to be bumping into his wife all night, if possible. He smiled at her.

"Fancy a shower?"

She clucked her tongue at him. "Harry, I'm a bit dismayed."

"What? Why?"

"We must be getting old! Two years ago you wouldn't have let me get past the door to the bedroom without having your way with me at least twice…."

He could tell she was teasing and grinned at her. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her, deepening it as the moments passed. When they finally broke apart, he was pleased to see a feral look on her face.

"We have plenty of time for me to have my way with you, Ginevra," he said softly, and she shivered as she licked her lips, gazing at him. Ginny had once told him that he was the only person alive who could use her full name and not be hexed into oblivion. She loved the way it sounded when he said it, apparently. Harry had discovered throughout the years that if he wanted to achieve a specific reaction from her, all he had to do was say it low and soft, and she'd be like putty in his hands.

Of course, Harry had his own buttons to be pushed and thankfully, she knew all of those. The last five years of sleeping in their marriage bed had not been spent just sleeping, after all.

"Shower then?" she said softly, leaning forward, planting a small kiss along his neck. He breathed in the flowery scent of her hair and nodded.

"Shower, please. And maybe we can use that bench a bit."

Ginny pulled back, smiling. "A bit of a taste?"

Harry nodded and started to remove his jacket. "A bit, I think, is the least we can do to christen this shower."

o-o-o-o-o

"We simply must get one of those at home," Ginny sighed happily as she lay back on the bed. Harry paused in the doorway, loosely tying his dressing gown around him. He smirked at her.

"Yes, I rather think you enjoyed the position quite a bit," he said, teasing her.

She propped herself up on the back of her arms and gave him a blazing look. "You weren't complaining either, dear husband."

He walked over to the bed, moving in between her legs and looked down at her as he slipped his glasses back on. "Well, I admit I do like to see you on your knees, dear wife."

"Pig," she said coyly as she rubbed one of her legs up against his.

Harry leaned over her as close as he could without touching her, and he watched as she bit her lip in anticipation. He smiled widely at her.

"Yes, actually I am; but what are you going to do about it, Mrs Potter?"

She arched her eyebrow and reached out to pull at the tie he'd just made around his waist. "Shag you senseless?" she said sweetly.

Harry laughed. "That sounds more like a treat for me than for you."

Ginny made a face and then leaned forward, kissing him. The cool air of the room caressed his skin as she pushed the dressing gown off his shoulders, and he wondered briefly why he'd even bothered to put it on. Their bodies collided and they rolled over on the bed, so that Ginny was looking down at him, a proud look on her face. She scooted closer to him, rubbing against him and even though she'd just treated him very finely in the shower, his body was already responding. She felt it too and looked down at him, smirking.

"My, my, the return of Twice-In-One-Hour-Potter. I reckon this night off was a good idea."

Harry chuckled and moved his hands to her hips, untying her robe for her, his hands hungrily touching her skin. He loved his wife's body - was that so wrong? His hands traced up the scar she bore on the side of her stomach from giving birth. True to what he loved about her, she had not wanted the scar to be removed by magic. They both saw it as a sort of testament to what was important to them - to experience light you had to put up with the dark, and the night of the twins birth had unfortunately been very dark indeed. There had been complications, and Ginny had been at the mercy of Muggle medicine; he had almost lost her that night. He was glad the scar was there to remind him.

She'd once told him that she found his scar sexy; he had said the same to her and he met her eyes now as he ran his finger up the length of it.

"Beautiful," he whispered and she leaned down as they kissed again, both of them feeling rather passionate.

Ginny broke away first, her eyes dark and her breathing a bit quick. She smiled as she touched his scar, now just a mere whisper under his thick fringe.

"Yes, I agree," she said quietly, meeting his gaze. "You know maybe I've changed my mind; perhaps it would be okay if you shagged me senseless, Harry."

He reached up and brushed her hair back away from her face, bringing her fingers to his mouth as he kissed the tips. "I don't know, Ginny. You have a lot of sense; I'm merely one man, who, as you noted, has already had a turn. I don't know if I can be properly motivated."

She smiled and nodded, accepting his challenge, and lowered her head down to his chest. Her mouth was warm and wet against him and he shivered as she teased his nipples with her teeth. He sighed as he watched her, letting his hand run through her hair as she teased him. Her hand slid down to stroke him into readiness and he sucked in a low breath, getting lost in the sensations she always created in him. Discovering that Ginny could love him so well and so completely never ceased to amaze him, and he always marvelled at her ability to please him.

She nipped at his skin playfully, glancing up at him. She moved back up and smiled slyly as she let her hair fall over them.

"Something tells me I need to do a bit more here," she said huskily. She brought her mouth to his neck, moving it slowly upwards toward his ear and he shivered. She knew he loved it when she kissed him around the ears; it drove him crazy, actually. But she had more in mind than just that as he felt her breath hot against the side of his face and her whispered voice enticed him even further as she told him what she wanted him to do to her. He groaned as the words came out of her mouth; hearing Ginny talk dirty was yet another thing that could drive him up the wall.

He wrapped his arms around her and they turned over onto their sides, hands exploring and their mouths meeting in another kiss. He reached down to touch her intimately, but she pulled back slightly, shaking her head at him. He watched as she did it herself and he felt a fierce sort of need rise up inside of him. He grinned and shook his head at her.

"You really are teasing me with everything tonight, aren't you, Ginevra?"

She seemed full of heat as she nodded and licked her lips. "This is supposed to be your present after all."

Harry watched her for a moment and then reached down to touch himself, picking up where she had left off. They had discovered quite by accident that they both enjoyed watching the other, and amazingly enough to Harry, sometimes that would be all he would need - the sight of her pleasing herself usually made him follow in short succession. He'd often wondered if all married couples were as pervy as they were but knew that was one of those things he'd never truly know the answer to as he didn't fancy asking Ron and Hermione what they did behind their own closed doors.

Ginny moaned, pulling her hand away and then closed her eyes briefly before reaching out and stopping his own movements. "I need you inside of me, love."

He let go of himself, moving to get into position above her when she shook her head again. She grinned widely as she shifted and turned over. She flipped her hair back over her shoulder and winked at him. "I said shag me senseless, Harry."

He grinned and nodded, moving behind her. He ran his hands down over her back, pausing to reach around and caress her breasts, taking them both into his hands. She sighed and moaned as he planted a kiss at the small of her back and then moved his mouth downwards. She leaned forward and he breathed in deeply, loving the way she smelled. She had made herself very ready, he noted, and that excited him even more. He licked his way down and then slipped his tongue into her, causing her to push against him more, her legs moving wider apart.

The shower had made them both clean, and Harry enjoyed exploring her with his tongue. He reached up and held her backside in his hands as he licked at her, loving the moans he could hear as she tried to muffle them into the pillow in front of her. He let his hands drop to the back of her thighs, caressing them.

"Harry, I'm so close, please…."

He finally pulled away, regretting that she didn't seem to want to come with just his mouth on her and leaned forward, rubbing his body against her wetness. She shuddered and straightened out so that she could look back at him. He reached under her and let his hand cup her, moving it around in slow circles.

"Tell me you want it," he said softly, and she moaned as she let her head drop down, holding herself up on her hands.

"Yes, oh, yes, I want it. Please."

It was all he needed to hear. He leaned back and then slid into her, moving very slowly. Harry enjoyed the way their bodies fit. He loved the way she tightened around him the deeper he went. He paused when he was almost buried into her and she groaned, pushing back against him, asking for more. He moved the last inch and matched her moan with his own, bringing his hands to rest on her hips. God, I love nothing better than her in all the world, he thought as he slowly started to move. Harry resisted the urge to slam into her and gave her patient strokes, feeling her shake underneath him. Ginny was already half-gone; her soft cries and moans were music to his ears. He wondered if she knew she babbled incoherently when they were like this. He pulled her roughly against him each time he withdrew so that their bodies created a rhythm. He shifted his hips to the left and was rewarded by a string of curses that would have made Fred and George blush.

She gripped the duvet underneath them, her knuckles gone white as he speeded up his movements. Soon they were both grunting and swearing and moving as one. Harry closed his eyes and finally gave into his need to thrust more vigorously and pushed himself deeper into her. The sound of their bodies as they met made him even harder and Ginny suddenly cried out his name as she climaxed, a loud guttural noise that sounded like a snarl. He felt his body tighten and then drew a loud breath as he followed her, pounding into her as he fell against her, her name on his lips.

They collapsed together, both breathing harshly. Harry wrapped his arms around her, pulling her sharply against him, her head resting against his shoulder and neck.

"Oh, fuck me," she said softly, her hands finding his.

"But was it senseless?" he whispered, kissing her the back of her head.

She laughed and nodded. They stayed that way for a long while, until Harry was certain he wasn't about to die from his heart beating too fast. They hadn't been that intense in awhile, and he realised that he missed it. Sex with Ginny was always good, but sometimes it was more than that and this had been one of those times.

"Oh my goodness, I love you," she said as they shifted apart, Harry finally removing himself. He kissed her shoulder and then moved back on the bed and she moved with him, settling in his arms.

"We really let go there," he said, musing to himself.

She turned and looked up at him. "Yeah. I reckon we had it coming."

"Nice pun," he said with a smirk.

"Oh, you." She grinned and kissed his chest. "We haven't been that…untamed in awhile. I think I broke a nail hanging onto the bed."

"Hmm," Harry said, feeling sleepy, despite his best efforts to the contrary. She gave him a knowing look.

"And now you want to pass out, I know."

He gave her a toothy smile. "Hey, I've gone off twice in a short period of time, as you pointed out. I'm not a young seventeen year old anymore."

"You had just turned nineteen the first time we did it and you know it," Ginny said, clucking her tongue at him. She kissed him again and then settled down once more, her hand over him, as though in ownership.

"Well, as soon as I rest up, I'll shag you again and again, Mrs Potter, and you'll be the one worn out, mark my words."

She gave him a wide grin. "Don't say things you can't promise, Mr Potter."

Harry closed his eyes and smiled, knowing that once he woke up he'd have to prove to her that he could do it. But he really didn't mind.

o-o-o-o-o