Disclaimer: Two tickets to see the latest Harry Potter movie…$18. One lawn seat ticket to see James Taylor (my favorite musician EVER)…$50. Me finally getting this chapter out…priceless. And if I owed any of this (the characters, the song, this cheesy discover card commercial format) I'd be getting paid for putting it out…and I wouldn't have to worry about paying for the previous two items.
A/N: Okay here's the second part of the update, and it will probably be the last chapter for this story, but it's really long so I hope that makes up for it. I know the song seems kinda odd for the story but I love it none the less and I was listening to the other night as I was laying out back watching the fireflies and stars, all of which provided my inspiration for this ball of marshmallow fluff I'm calling a chapter. Actually at first this story didn't even occur to me…it was more my own imagination running wild whilst thinking about a certain guy from my past…so more of the credit should actually go to him, who meant more to me and changed my life in more ways than he'll ever know J
Chapter 15 – Of Fairies and Snowflakes
And here I thought that day last week when everyone was arriving would be the craziest it got this break…what the hell was I thinking…
It was Christmas morning at the Burrow and Ginny could barely hear herself think. Her parents had this tradition that had actually started the year Ron was born, that none of the kids could open any presents until both of them had finished a steaming hot cup of tea. Of course they had charmed their mugs so that they were always full and even now that all of the kids were older Mr. and Mrs. Weasley still enjoyed sitting at the table, making small talk while all their kids waited impatiently. So while her parents and Bill and Charlie (who probably enjoyed torturing their younger siblings more than their parents) sat around the kitchen table and drank their tea Percy, Penelope, Fred, George, Ron, Hermione, Harry and Ginny all waited in the living room surrounded by stacks of presents.
"Don't worry mate, Mum usually only lasts about an hour before she caves in," Ron explained to Harry as they looked around at the different gifts, trying to guess which ones were theirs. Harry, still in awe over the gift Ginny had given him the previous morning, had gotten a gift for Ginny when he accompanied Mrs. Weasley and Hermione to muggle London and he hoped she would love it as much as he had loved his gift.
"Honestly Ron do you have to shake all the boxes? There might be something breakable in those," Hermione plucked a large, rather crumpled orange and green gift (no doubt wrapped by one of the twins) out of Ron's hands while he childishly stuck his tongue out at her.
"Gee 'Mione, and here I thought when you two got together things would change," Ron picked up a pillow and tossed it at Harry's head. He retaliated by taking on of Ginny's slippers off her foot and lobbing it back in Ron's direction. Unfortunately it missed Ron and hit Bill, who had chosen that moment to walk back into the living room.
"Sorry Bill," Harry said sheepishly, "I was aiming at Ron."
"Oh, well in that case…" Bill picked up the slipper off the floor and whacked Ron in the head with it, making Ginny giggle.
"What are you laughing at ickle Ginny? Shouldn't you be off snogging Harry in a closet somewhere?" At which point Ginny pulled off her other slipper and hit Ron squarely in the face.
"Now what's going on in here? We leave you children alone for a couple minutes so we can enjoy a spot of tea," Mr. Weasley walked in with his arm around his wife's shoulder, followed by Charlie a minute later.
"Ron was being an ignorant prat Daddy. Trust me, he deserved it," Ginny said with her sweetest smile as she gave a father a quick hug before sitting down next to Hermione.
"Alright, pumpkin. You know what though; I think I could go for another cup of tea," he made a motion to go back into the kitchen but was pulled forcefully over to the sofa.
"Oh Arthur, now we've made the kids wait long enough. You can drink your tea in here if you're so thirsty." This caused everyone to have a nice little laugh before they began opening presents.
"I told you I didn't get you any books this year, Ron," Hermione said after Ron had opened her gift.
"You're absolutely right. Thanks 'Mione," he leaned over and gave his girlfriend a quick peck on the cheek. "Okay the next one here is for Bill."
Bill's gift actually turned out to be a magical pacifier that was supposed to help lull a baby to sleep almost instantly and one of Mrs. Weasley's famous knitted jumpers that was tiny enough for an infant. It was obvious to everyone that the gift had been wrapped and set under the tree before Bill's big announcement a few nights ago, but Bill assured his mother that he would have use for the items some day. Mr. Weasley received a box chock full of plugs that Harry had brought from the Dursley's, and when Hermione opened up Ron's present she jumped up and threw her arms around his neck, squeezing him tight.
"You know, you are the only person I know who could get excited over knapsack," Harry said.
"It's not just any knapsack. It's the one from Flourish and Blotts that I've had my eyes on! It can fit up to ten books without expanding or getting all heavy! Mmm, thank you Ron. It's the best gift ever!" Hermione gave him another squeeze while Ginny picked up the next gift.
"Let's see, this one is from Charlie to…me. Hmm, I wonder what it could be?" She pulled the paper off to reveal a tiny black and brown teddy bear with a red bow tied around its neck. Puzzled she looked up at her brother for an explanation.
"Oy! Ginny, looks like there's something on that ribbon," Ron leaned over to get a closer look, "See there, it says…hmmm, it just says 'Merry Christmas'," All of a sudden Ginny was engulfed in a small cloud of smoke and there was loud pop. Then there was an earsplitting scream.
"CHARLLLIIIEEEE!!!!!! Oh thank you Charlie! Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!" Ginny jumped up and into her brother's lap, throwing her arms around him and placing kisses all over his face.
"I've had it for a while, but Mum wouldn't let me give it to you at the beginning of the year…" But Ginny wasn't paying attention, for in her lap sat a brand-new Firebolt 2.0; the newest, fastest, best performing broom on the market.
"Wow Gin, no one will be able to out fly you now, well except maybe me," Harry joked as everyone gathered around to see Ginny's gift.
"None of those Slytherin prats will and that's what matters most! With Harry going after the snitch, Ron protecting those posts and you as Chaser on that thing there's no way Gryffindor can lose the Cup this year. What'd you say Dad?" Fred said as things started to calm down.
"You know you make us proud every time you go out and play dear, win or lose." Mr. Weasley ruffled his daughter's hair as she calmed down and took a seat between him and Charlie, still clutching her new broom.
Harry and Hermione had both chipped in and bought Mrs. Weasley a lovely set of knitting needles, which they had purchased in London while she had gone to the little girl's room and Hermione had later charmed so that the yarn being knitted would automatically change color so only one ball of yarn would be needed for any one project.
Penelope, in the spirit of their upcoming nuptials, had picked out the perfect gift for Percy. It was a small cream colored notebook engraved with both of their names on the cover.
"It's a special wedding planning notebook sweetie. We can plan everything to the most minor detail. Look there's a miniature diagram to plan out the seating, and even a spot to write down the exact dimension specifications of the venue!"
Beaming, Percy leaned over and placed the neatest of kisses on his fiancés cheek. "I love it darling. And I love you."
The next gift had a tag addressed to Harry, but Hermione recognized it as the box with the hideous radioactive orange and vomit green paper that Ron had been looking at earlier. She warned Harry that the gift was from the twins and after Mr. Weasley looked it over thoroughly the gift was deemed safe. It turned out to be a very nice case specially made to house his invisibility cloak. Strangely enough the rest of the twins' gifts turned out to safe too. For a change there were no lotions that turned your skin blue, or boxers that made the wearer break out and sing 'I'm a Little Teapot'. Although when Ron implied that they were losing their touch now that they were important businessmen running their own joke shop Ginny saw a glint in George's eye that said the new owl cage he'd received for Pig probably had some tricks up its sleeve.
"Okay, this one here is 'To Miss Virginia Weasley'," Charlie said, passing the gift to his right, where Ginny was now sitting on the floor besides the couch. The present was wrapped in a shimmery silver paper that had pictures of snowflakes that were charmed to spin around on it. Unlike with all her previous gifts she took her time opening this one, carefully setting the paper down.
"Well look at that dear, now I wonder what that could be?" Mrs. Weasley asked with a knowing smile, peering over her daughter's shoulder into the small black velvet box. She nudged Hermione, who was looking rather impatient, as Ginny opened it. Inside on a bed of light silvery material sat a silver chain with a small teardrop diamond hanging from the middle. "Now isn't that pretty, who's it from sweetie?"
"It's from…" Ginny dug through the other crumbled paper around her to find where the card had gotten to, "…aha, it's from…it's from Harry. Thank you Harry, it's beautiful." She got up from off the floor and walked over to their chair (as she had come to think of it) where, in front of her whole family none the less, sat down on Harry's lap, took his face in her hands and kissed him square on the lips. For just a moment all other conversation in the living room paused, but when Bill finally broke the silence it seemed that no one was particularly surprised.
"Finally."
"It's about damn time."
"The necklace really is lovely."
"Merlin, is that a real diamond Harry? That must have cost a fortune."
"Ronald, don't ask things like that."
"So does this mean you and our little Ginnikins are in loooove?"
"Oooo….Harry and Ginny sittin' in a tree…"
"Fred must you be so immature?"
While the rest of the Weasleys were busy talking about this long-time-coming development in the lives of the two teens, Harry pulled the necklace from the box, placed it around Ginny's neck and spoke very quietly as he closed the silver clasp, "Merry Christmas Gin. Oh, and don't tell Ron this, but it is real…" Ginny's eyes lit up in shock and Harry could tell she was getting ready to scold him for spending so much on one silly little gift, "…and don't even say it. You are totally and completely worth it…just don't let Ron know." When Ginny went to open her mouth again Harry brought a finger to her lips and Ginny sighed in resignation.
"Don't worry, I won't. Merry Christmas Harry," she reached up for another kiss but saw Harry sort of nudging his chin in the direction of the necklace box, "What now you git? Here I am trying to properly thank you and…what the hell is wrong with your head? Was something in those candies the twins gave you?" He rolled his eyes and took the box from her, opening it back up and placing it in her hands.
Ginny looked up and locked eyes with Harry, who was biting on his lower lip in a way that she found deliciously endearing; then glanced back down. She ran her eyes over the box again and suddenly spotted a small sliver of paper protruding from corner of the box. She caught Harry's eyes again, letting him know she had found what he was hinting at. Making sure that everyone else was preoccupied Ginny slowly pried the base of the box up just enough to pull out the slip of paper. In Harry's simple script was written a short message:
Edge of the woods. Midnight.
-H
She hoped no one would notice the blush rising in her cheeks as she saw that Harry was grinning like a fool. Ginny returned it with a shy smile of her own as she placed the note back in the necklace box, away from the prying eyes of her family.
"Head's up George, here's another one with your name." Bill tossed another wrapped gift in his brother's direction. Some more gifts were passed around and Ginny went through the motions of opening the rest of hers, but sitting in the lap of the boy she had loved for so long, her mind was more than a little preoccupied.
Midnight could come soon enough for Ginny as she waited for the clock to strike twelve.
It's like the reverse of that silly Cinderella story we read in Muggle Studies. Instead of dreading midnight I can't wait for it! Oh well, as long as I don't kick him in the face like I did the last time…how stupid was I to be nervous that day, thinking he was gonna tell me he loved me…oh shit, what if that's what he wants to tell me now? I mean he did get me that incredible necklace, it must have cost a lot…bollocks, he probably thinks I'm gonna have sex with him now, I know how most guys think…but Harry's not like most guys, he's sweet and he's funny and he's smart…and anyway, I doubt he's the kind of guy that would do it out in the woods…
The soft chime of the clock in the corner of her room broke Ginny out of her reverie. Getting ready she looked over to make sure Hermione was still sleeping soundly and once assuring herself her friend was indeed asleep she quickly tiptoed out the door. The steps were a little more difficult to navigate; having the requisite creaking floorboards that usually alerted many a parent to a child sneaking out. Ginny however, unlike most teenagers who always seem to step of the wrong step and awake half the house, had an advantage – a map similar the Marauder's Map that Fred and George had created for her for her 13th birthday.
The map wasn't as advanced as the Marauder's was. It was only capable of showing where her Mum and Dad were, but it did include which steps and floorboards to avoid, which windows were always unlocked and three of the best routes for sneaking out of the Burrow without alerting anyone. Using the map Ginny carefully hopped down the steps and made her way out through the kitchen door. Once she was outside she pulled the tie to her night robe more tightly and proceeded to the edge of the woods where she saw Harry waiting for her.
He too was still in his pajamas, although she was sure the flannel pants and oversized sweatshirt were far warmer than her thin nightgown and robe. He was looking down at the ground and rubbing his hands together. Although to anyone else it may have looked like he was doing it to keep warm, Harry knew it was actually out of nerves. He was incredibly nervous; to the point of almost being physically sick. Hermione insisted that Ginny would adore anything he did.
Okay…I can do this, Hermione said as long as it was from the heart Ginny would love it…I can't believe I actually has the balls to ask Hermione about this…I just hope she didn't tell Ginny anything after they went upstairs…Merlin, what if she did tell Gin about what I was planning…It's almost midnight and she isn't here yet…what if Hermione told her and now she thinks I'm some sad, sappy, pansy…she's probably upstairs right now having a good laugh about this…thinking about what she'll tell all her friends when she gets back to school…oh bloody hell, it'll start out in Gryffindor, then it'll go to Hufflepuff and then Ravenclaw and it's only a matter of time before it reaches Slytherin…God, when Malfoy hears about it I'm sure he'll have a jolly good effing time then…
The sound of the snow crunching beneath someone's feet brought Harry out of his daze. He looked up and saw a shock of red hair concealed under the hood of the lavender robe Ginny had received that morning. His fear of looking like a fool vanishing with each step she took towards him, her smile radiating.
"Way to be cryptic Potter, 'edge of the woods' and 'midnight', what are we in some harlequin muggle romance novel or something?" She joked as she approached him, pulling him in for a quick kiss, dissipating any of his remaining nerves. She gripped his hand tightly as she began to try and walk through the trees, confused when he stayed grounded.
"Nuh, uh, uh…not so fast, one last thing I have to do," he produced his bulky gold and crimson Gryffindor scarf from his pocket, and held it up for Ginny to see, "Do you trust me Gin?" he asked. She gave him a smirk and nodded, then turned around so he could tie the makeshift blindfold behind her head. Once it was secured tightly Harry grabbed a hold of her hand again and led her through the woods.
"So aren't you even going to give me the slightest hint of what we're doing out here? Pretty, pretty please???" She pouted and turned her head to where she assumed Harry was. Underneath the scarf she could hear him laugh, "How about I guess and you tell me if I'm hot or cold? Okay…is it bigger than a breadbox? Can I take it back to school with me? Is it a puppy? Oooo…I know what it is, you are going to take me away to Paris where we'll have a romantic dinner and make love till dawn!" Harry's head shot up and he was thankful that Ginny couldn't see him, for with her last comment his face had turned a lovely shade of red…lovely for a tomato that is.
If only you knew Ginny, and you didn't have any older brothers who would hunt me down because no matter how 'okay' they are with us being together I doubt they would approve of what we would do together.
He turned to Ginny and saw the look of mock-seriousness on the uncovered portion of her face and decided to go along with it.
"Depends Gin, is that what you want? You know I still have some money stashed away in my trunk..." Now it was Ginny's turn to blush until she heard Harry try and suppress his laughter. She nudged him with her shoulder, and he responded with a nudge of his own back. The pair fell into a comfortable silence as they continued walking until Ginny suddenly lurched forward, tripping over one of the ends of Harry's scarf. She giggled as she tried to feel around for the hand that she knew Harry had stretched out in aid.
"You couldn't have found a smaller scarf, could you have? This bloody thing is far too big to be wrapped around my petit head. You're just trying to make me look like a fool, aren't you Harry?" Ginny did look quite ridiculous as she stood back up, the great wool scarf being so long that the excess trailed down her back and tangled in her legs.
"Absolutely right Gin. This has been my master plan all along. Blindfold you, lure you out into the woods, and take horribly embarrassing pictures of you. Which are then going to be taken back to school and distributed so that every…" He wasn't prepared when she took a playful swing at him and actually hit him. He was surprised at how good her aim was blindfolded, but unfortunately her feet weren't as lucky and she tripped over a tree root. Harry managed to catch her before she tumbled to the ground.
"Can't you just take this silly thing off me Harry? I promise to keep my eyes shut. I don't like not being able to see where I'm walking." Luckily for her, they had already reached their destination. He paused and walked around behind her so that he could unwrap the scarf. When Ginny was finally able to open her eyes, she gasped.
"Oh my god, Harry, this is…its incredible! When did you…how did you...it's beautiful." She covered her mouth with her hand as she took in her surroundings. They were standing underneath the tree house, which had glistening icicles dangling from its platform. Beneath them the ground had been cleared free of the snow that had fallen earlier and a large circle had been formed on the ground using boughs from a nearby pine tree. More icicles hung down the lower branches of the trees that surrounded them and all of the smaller trees and bushes around the circle were covered with a light dusting of snow; each full of hundreds of tiny blinking white lights which illuminated the entire area.
"Fairies. You see I could've gotten a great deal of some muggle holiday lights when I went into London with your Mum the other day, but I kinda liked these better," he spoke softly in her ear as he stood behind her, bringing his arms up to wrap around her waist, "What'd you think Gin?" His hot breath on her neck causing the butterflies to start working double-time in her stomach.
She could only nod, being slightly preoccupied by the things Harry was doing to her neck and ear lobe.
"Well, I'm glad you like it." Ginny decided that if she had to feel his lips caress the back of her neck one more time she was sure her legs would give out, so she slowly turned to face the boy behind her.
"I love it. I think it's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen." Her voice was barely above a whisper.
"None of this compares to you though…" His words trailed off as he lowered his mouth to hers, capturing it in a searing kiss. As Ginny began to work her hands up his back, tangling one in his messy black hair and allowing the other to rest on his shoulder, the kiss deepened even more. Harry kept one arm around Ginny's waist, pulling her closer, and brought the other one around, fumbling slightly, to pull out his wand. When they parted to take a breath Harry took the opportunity to lift his head and cast an incantation. Ginny looked up as well, and then heard the soft strains of music begin to rise.
Harry tucked his wand back into his pocket before taking both of Ginny's hands and placing them around his neck, then placing his own back around her. Ginny lowered her head against Harry's shoulder and then began to sway back and forth to the soothing sound of the guitar and sax coming from…well, Ginny wasn't sure where it was coming from but she could have cared less once she felt the hands on her back start to rub small lazy circles.
Do me wrong,
Do me right,
Tell me lies but hold me tight
Save your goodbyes for the morning light
But don't let me be lonely tonight
Say goodbye and say hello
Sure enough good to see you
But it's time to go
Don't say yes but please don't say no
I don't want to be lonely tonight
"I do believe that this is by far the best Christmas ever." Ginny tilted her head to the side, placing light feathery kisses up Harry's neck.
"Even if it's not a romantic dinner in Paris?" Just as his hands on her back was mesmerizing Ginny, the scent of the lavender shampoo he was breathing in was intoxicating Harry.
"Even without the dinner. Besides I do have a birthday coming up you know."
"Planning our future already Miss Weasley? March is a long way away…but I plan on sticking around a while. Who knows, you might get your wish,"
Go away vandana
Go on and do as you please
You ain't gonna see me gettin' down on my knees
I'm undecided and your heart's been divided
You've been turning my world upside down
Do me wrong,
Do me right, right now baby
Go on and tell me lies but hold me tight
Save your goodbyes for the morning light
But don't let me be lonely tonight
She forgot all the times her brothers hadn't let her play Quiddich with them and left her at home, she forgot her first year when Ron teased her mercilessly about that silly poem she wrote, she forgot all the years pining away for a boy everyone told her she'd never have…
He forgot all the times he'd had to make breakfast for those dreadful Dursley's, he forgot being stared at every time he walked down the streets of Hogsmeade, he forgot all those years of being afraid of truly getting close to someone…
Neither was quite able to forget the chamber and what had gone on when they were there, or the fact that Voldermort was still out there, or that Sirius would never be out there again…
I don't want to be lonely tonight
No, I don't want to be lonely tonight
But when they both looked up and saw the faerie lights reflected in the other's eyes and their lips met tenderly it somehow helped make things a little better. Ginny wished with all her heart that witches had the power to freeze time, their moment in time, forever because for a short while that's all there was; Ginny Weasley and Harry Potter – together, in their pajamas, dancing in the woods, surrounded by music and fairies and snowflakes, all blanketed beneath a sky full of a thousand stars.