The cold night air stung Harry's face as he hurtled through the tangled branches of trees
surrounding the Quidditch field. The borrowed Nimbus 2000 was no match for his
Firebolt for speed and agility, but for Harry's purposes tonight, it was all he needed. All
he wanted to do was forget about his conversation with Hermione - or attempt at one! He
gritted his teeth slightly and sped for the ground, pulling up at the last minute in a ragged
shadow of a Wronski Feint.
"Forget about it," he thought morosely. There was no point in pursuing the matter. His
weak stab at confiding in Hermione had ended disastrously that evening, and there was
NO way he was going to pursue the matter without some kind of.well, advice.
And Ginny. He closed his eyes, trying to remember - or was it block out? -- her image.
Ginny, who looked so happy and beautiful standing there in the common room -- Harry
ducked quickly to avoid the large tree branch that threatened to decapitate him. Where
had that come from?
Ginny seemed perfectly content with their relationship as it stood. Their time together
was filled with cuddling, kisses, and laughter. At least when one of them wasn't almost
dead. There had been an almost unspoken agreement that their love was a reprieve, a
reason to forget the shadows lurking behind every door. Every day was an opportunity to
gift each other with a distraction from the serious and dangerous.
Of course, some kisses in the broom cupboard got pretty heated, but usually time was
limited. There always seemed to be someone gawking and smirking in the Gryffindor
common room. It was all very proper - and it was driving him crazy. Obviously, he was
the only one it bothered. She had never given him any reason to think otherwise. Of
course, when had the issue ever been discussed? From almost the first day Harry had met
her, their relationship had had only a passing acquaintance with the romantic stuff that
made Lavender and Pavarti swoon. Voldemort had seen to that. He felt his hands
involuntarily tighten around the broom handle. He saw his first glimpse of that tiny, still
form at the feet of Tom Riddle, then again felt the burning wrench of his heart breaking
when he heard the words "Avada Kadavra" and saw the too familiar green flash that had
almost taken her from him forever. He shook his head violently, almost losing balance.
When you've spent a large portion of your relationship fighting to stay alive, the question
of ...sex .just doesn't have that much opportunity to come up!
Harry sat up suddenly, feeling stupid. Well, of course it doesn't! But then, they weren't
fighting for their lives now. He was more or less living on borrowed time - eventually
Voldemort was going to come for him. They both knew that. He remembered what
Ginny had said that day in the infirmary when she was recovering from the curse that
almost killed her. She had told him under no uncertain terms that she would be with him.
No matter what the future held. What was it she said? "We have to take each day as it
comes and live for the moment, for now at least."* So how did he forget that? So, what
was to stop him now? There was still a lot to think about, but he started to feel better.
Harry slowly spiraled to the ground and landed. He dismounted and started to walk back
toward the castle.
"Hey there," a beloved voice startled him out of the darkness.
He squinted at the shadow. "Gin?" He saw the moonlight reflected on her crimson and
gold hair, flowing freely now. She was sitting cross-legged on a low wall in the garden.
She was.
"Gin! Is that a CIGARETTE? Are you SMOKING?"
She grinned wickedly and pulled it out of her mouth. "Nope. One of George and Fred's
latest. Got an owl from them yesterday with it and a letter saying that they promise that it
won't do anything too humiliating to me if I try it out for them. So far it just gives off
this weird steamy stuff and tastes like raspberries. Not bad, really. Fantastical Fag, I
think they're calling it." She stuck it back between her lips, jumped down, and held out
her hand. Harry took it and laughed, feeling himself relax. He loved her for her courage,
if nothing else.
"So..how was Quidditch practice?" asked Ginny glancing quickly at him.
"Oh, you know.. The usual."
"So now the field is going to be full of trees and it's going to be played with no Snitch, no
Quaffle, and no players either? Well except for the Seeker, of course. Glad to see they
haven't nicked him yet." Harry took a swat at her. She jumped away from his hand and
laughed. "Come on, Harry - I saw the whole team come in grumbling that you'd stood
them up. I sat here and watched you give a really bad imitation of Viktor Krum."
Harry had to grin. It was hard to stay in a rotten mood when he was with her.
"I was just flying around..Hey -!" He choked back a laugh. There was a telltale knitted
collar poking from the neck of her robe. "Isn't it bad enough that I don't have any socks
anymore? Is that my sweater you're wearing?" She turned to face him, dancing backward
and looking impish.
"You know Harry, it does bring out the color in your eyes!" Ginny deadpanned in her
best Mrs. Weasley voice. She pulled it briefly over her chin past her nose. "It smells like
you." her voice was muffled. She pulled her face back out looking flushed and slightly
embarrassed. "I like to.well, you know..stop studying and just breathe in."
Harry felt the now-familiar rush of color. Only Ginny would have the candor to say
something like that to his face. He really couldn't win against such tactics. He laughed
and grabbed the back of her robe as she attempted escape. Ginny squeaked in surprise as
he spun her around into his arms.
"So you want it back, is that what you're saying?" she asked challengingly.
"Want what back?" he murmured just barely licking the curve of her ear lingeringly--
something guaranteed to get a response. He felt her fingers grip the hair at the back of his
neck, sending an electric shock down his spine. She pressed up against him, kissing him
deeply, then broke it off abruptly and backed away.
"You said that you wanted your sweater back?" she almost sung softly. Her arms had
disappeared into the sleeves of her robe.
"Mmm.wwhat?" as usual, Harry's IQ had dropped precipitously as soon as she had
pressed against him.. He stared, fascinated. Ginny was acting...differently.
More.assertive? Not that that was a bad thing..
"Your sweater?" Ginny was laughing quietly and seductively when she suddenly brought
the sweater up and over her head in one swift motion. Before Harry could shake his
glazed eyes clear, she sent it sailing over his face. By the time he had wrestled out of its
smothering folds, she was inches away from him, gazing up at him with a look of mock
innocence. Her robe was very loosely fastened down the front...Harry stared, unable to
look away from the place where his sweater had just been. What .was she doing?
"Happy now?" she whispered in his ear. "Take it - I don't need it now anyway.." She
kissed the spot under his earlobe, trailing her lips slowly down the side of his neck. Harry
shuddered. A low groan escaped him as he felt himself pushed gently against the wall -
what wall WAS this anyway? Oh, the upper garden ... She kissed him softly, once again
pressing her full - and now un-sweatered body against his. His last lucid thought was
"Well, this wasn't so hard .." before she slid her tongue between his lips and all sanity
left him. Small hands slid under his robes.his shirt. Soon she wasn't the only
aggressive one.
A few minutes later, a small shriek issued from the tangle of robes, arms, and legs that
littered the ground next to the wall. Ginny sat up looking more than a little disheveled.
Her robe hung askew showing a very appealing and very bare shoulder. She was gasping
for breath between gales of almost hysterical laughter.
"What?" Harry was groping vainly for his glasses that had ended up - well, somewhere
else. "What's wrong?" He was panting too, but it wasn't from laughter.
"Harry..she giggled helplessly. "That letter..from George and Fred.with the
candy.." She fell back onto his lap in another paroxysm of hysteria. "They made me
promise - no - SWEAR that I would only try it when you were around.."
It was difficult for Harry to understand her words when she was - well, wriggling in his
lap. He firmly grasped her about the waist - under the robe of course, to get a better grip,
and hoisted her up to face him. She was still shaking with laughter. He had to chuckle
himself at the expression on her face. It was a cross between mortification and anger and
hysterical amusement.
"Harry! My brothers must be diversifying! They must have sent me an aphrodisiac!"
Harry's mouth dropped to the ground. He didn't know whether to laugh or take a cold
shower. So, this evil, seductive AMAZING Ginny was..magically..enhanced.? He
groaned, dropping flat on his back in the grass. Ginny spilled off him into a limp, softly
giggling pile. Harry stared up at the cloudy dark sky, the world suddenly crashing back
and becoming annoyingly complicated once again. No.Fred and George wouldn't do
that. Would they? They were too protective of their little sister to do..that. But.they
made her SWEAR to be around him when she tried it? An aphrodisiac? She didn't
really.want.him? He felt his breath leave him like he'd been kicked in his - er,
stomach.
He felt long hair graze his bare ribs as, suddenly calm, she laid her cheek on his stomach.
"Harry?"
"Hmmm?"
"I'm really sorry. I shouldn't have jumped on you like that. I know that you don't want to
..get that close.I mean, I understand - with everything so.uncertain.the future, I
mean. " She sat up, pulling her knees up to her chest protectively. " Tonight.I just
couldn't hide it, I guess. Sometimes it almost hurts.the wanting. It took some raspberry
candy cigarette-thing to break through all my.control."
There was silence. It was growing colder. Harry shivered.
"Ginny?"
"Hmmm?"
He sat up. "Are you saying that you.wanted to - wanted to..." He couldn't say it any
better than with Hermione. No wonder they never talked about this stuff! He turned
toward her small hunched figure. All he could see was hair - he gently pulled some away
until he found her ear. Using it as a landmark, he found her chin and turned her face
toward him. She wasn't giggling anymore. "Gin..did you .WANT to.do this?"
She choked - half laughing, half crying. "To do what - THIS? Harry, I'd have done a lot
more than..this. before now...I just couldn't bear to have you. stop me." He
could see that her eyes were shining with tears now.
"Oh Gin." he gathered her up against his chest. He felt a giddy sweep of elation.
"Gin.I've wanted nothing but to. " he sputtered with happy laughter, he couldn't help
it, "do every salacious, lecherous.thing I can think of to you! I thought that you would
stop me!"
Ginny stared at him for a long moment, then flung herself at him.
"But not here where it's freezing cold and we're already illegally outside" Harry laughed a
minute later, pulling the again sagging robe onto her shoulder. She answered him with
one last wicked kiss and jumped to her feet. Both quickly rearranged themselves.
Harry led her down the path to the Greenhouse. They entered it quietly.
"Uh, Harry?"
"Yeah Gin?"
"Am I allowed to ask where we're going?"
"Go ahead."
"Harry?"
"Yeah Gin?"
"Where are we going?"
Harry was digging around behind an ugly statue of a Unicorn - it looked more like a
Hippogriff. It had seen better days and was now presumably living out its retirement in a
far corner of the Greenhouse. He found a handle and pulled hard. There was a scraping
sound.
"Well, there's only one passage on the Marauder's map that I haven't tried - after you,
Madam." He stepped back to reveal a dimly lit dirt passage lined with dangling roots and
loose earth.
Ginny laughed and grabbed his hand. "Oh, Mr. Potter - you do know how to impress a
lady!"
Harry stepped into the passage, grinning. "Well, I reckon it beats running into Filch at the
front door as we casually stroll by. I'm not sure, but I think that this comes out near the
library."
"Lead on!"
The halls were silent as they crawled stealthily out from behind a huge portrait in the
library corridor. "Amazing," whispered Harry, "How is it that no one noticed this before?
How come I didn't notice it before?"
"HARRY! GINNY!" Hermione was running toward them. "Where have you been? Don't
answer that! I don't want to know!" Ginny raised an eyebrow at the prefects badge on her
robe. "Harry, Dumbledore wants to see you! I told McGonagall -- GINNY!" She
shrieked. "What's happened to your hair! "
Harry turned to look at her in the light. Her hair was bright - RASPBERRY! Brilliant
streaks of purple and lavender mixed with several loud shades of magenta and pink.
Ginny whirled around to look at her dull reflection in a tarnished suit of armor. Her
mouth dropped open. She looked at Harry, then back at herself. Then back at Harry. She
brought her hand up slowly to cover her mouth, her eyes starting to sparkle with
merriment.
"HARRY!" She squealed, jumping with delight. "The Fantastical Fag! It had to be!
HARRY! Do you know what this means?"
Harry stared. Then it hit him like a bludger - if the gag turned her hair pink, then it
wasn't...! He grabbed Ginny up in his arms and spun her around, laughing at her, at the
situation, but mostly with joy.
Hermione stood there in front of them with her arms crossed. Finally, she had to smile
reluctantly at the hysterical couple. " Ginny! I don't know what it means. Tell me!
Please!"
Ginny looked up at her best friend from her cozy cradle in Harry's arms. "Hermione!
Good news! I'm a scarlet woman!"