"Sirius," Ginny said, "Do I really have to go right now?"
Sirius stood up and took her hand in his own. Helping her stand, he led the way to the door. "Yes. You wouldn't want your parents to get too suspicious."
She caught his meaningful glance and nodded. She muttered, "No one but me knows..."
He gave Ginny a soft push out the doorway. She pouted. With a laugh, Sirius leaned down and kissed her. It was a deep kiss, but didn't last very long. Sirius closed the front door behind her and smirked, listening to her step off the porch. He went back to the couch and stretched out on it. Reaching out to pull the drapes back, Sirius watched as Ginny stepped onto the Knight Bus, which had just arrived. He let the heavy, moth-eaten curtains fall back into place with a sigh. He folded his arms behind his head and closed his eyes. Through the visions of Ginny Weasley dancing in front of the red background made by his closed eyelids, Sirius faintly heard the chime of the old clock above the mantelpiece. Twelve chimes...midnight.
†
By the time Ginny awoke, it was light outside and she could hear her brothers' voices floating up to her from the ground below her open bedroom window. Sliding out of bed, she realized that she still had on the red dress. She pulled it off. Ginny dug in her drawers, carefully avoiding the third one down, and found a pair of faded jeans. Putting those on with a light yellow tank-top, she picked up her sandals from the floor. She went to the window, tossed the sandals out, and watched them sail down to accidentally strike one of the boys in the head. She called "Sorry!" out the window and ran downstairs. Reaching the back door, her mother stopped her.
"Fix your pants, dear!" her Mum squawked at her, holding out some toast.
Ginny snatched the toast out of Mrs. Weasley's hand and yanked on the side belt loops of her jeans. They were actually Hermione's jeans, which would explain the fact that they were a bit too large and somewhat baggy on her small frame. Thanking her Mum by waving the toast at her, Ginny bolted outside to join her brothers. The moment she stepped off the deck, George tackled her, picking her up, and Fred stomped over. He was rubbing a small red spot on his forehead.
"Something wrong Freddy?" Ginny asked with a grin, putting up a half- hearted fight against her other bro, who still held onto her.
"Yes, something's wrong...Virginia!" Fred snapped back, becoming even more annoyed at being called 'Freddy'. "I was hit by an 'Unidentified- Flying-Shoe'!"
"I said I was sorry!" She giggled.
"Yeah Freddy, she said she was sorry!" George piped up.
"You stay outta it George!" He snapped at his twin.
"All three of you! Knock it off!" Ron cried, jogging over with Ginny's sandals held out in front of him.
She grabbed at them, but George was holding her too far away to reach. Ron moved closer and handed them to her, just as George released his grip and she fell to the ground by their feet. Standing up and swatting the grass off her butt, Ginny slipped her feet into the shoes. The sound of Mrs. Weasley screeching joyfully and Mr. Weasley laughing brought the four siblings running into the kitchen. They skidded to a halt in the doorway and Ron broke into a grin.
"Hey Harry!" He greeted the raven-haired boy who was being squished my Molly's embrace.
Mrs. Weasley let go of Harry and he waved. "Hey!" His gaze traveled over the other three, nodding to each as he greeted them, "Ginny. 'Lo Fred, 'lo George."
Ginny smiled back at Harry, finally able to directly meet his eyes for the first time since she'd met him. "Hi." She then turned and tugged on her father's sleeve. "Daddy, do you mind if I go to Diagon Alley today? I'm supposed to meet a friend there."
He frowned. "Which friend?"
"Uh...um...uhhhhh...Luna Lovegood..." She lied.
After thinking for a minute, Mr. Weasley nodded. "Might as well. Just keep in contact if there are any change in plans...like if you wanna spend the night!" he winked at her, edging away from the rolling pin that his wife held.
"Arthur! What makes you think she can always do as she pleases?" Mrs. Weasley asked, rather loudly. But she smiled at their only daughter and sighed. "I guess you can go..." She agreed, too weary to argue, and placed the rolling pin on the counter. Mr. Weasley sagged his shoulders, thankful not to have been thwacked over the head with it.
"Thanks Mum, Daddy!" Ginny squealed, giving both of them a kiss and rushing upstairs to her room.
Shutting the door of her bedroom, she picked up the receiver of the pale pink phone sitting on her nightstand. She quickly dialed Sirius's number. He picked up after the third ring.
"Um...'lo?" Sirius's somewhat slurred voice greeted her ears.
"It's me." She replied. "I was wondering-"
"Hi 'Gin'!" He cut her off and laughed, not revealing to her that 'gin' was exactly what he was drinking at the moment. "Yah was wondrin' whot?"
"If maybe I could spend the night with you! Dad said that I could stay the night at Luna's house if I wanted, 'cause he thinks I'm meeting Luna in Diagon Alley. So I could tell him that I'm at Luna's and really be with you all night...uh..." She stopped, hoping that his slur and heavy breathing was not from alcohol. No such luck.
"Well it is mighty risssky Babe...but whot the 'ell! Come on over Love!" he exclaimed and Ginny heard a 'thud' that she also hoped wasn't him falling off of whatever chair he was on. "I's alright!" He mumbled. "Meetcha there in... uuuhhhnnn..." Sirius paused, as if he was thinking hard, "...'bout fifeen minutes...seeyathere!" He ran the last three words together and then hung up before Ginny could reply.
Quickly, she called up her friend, Luna Lovegood, and told her the deal...well, as much as she could tell anyways. Luna agreed to cover Ginny's ass if her father called that night and they hung up.
With a sigh, she replaced the receiver on the cradle. "Hopefully Sirius knows some kind of a 'sobering charm'..." She said aloud to herself as she packed an overnight bag.
Ginny ran a brush through her copper locks and put on a thin layer of make-up before leaving her room and dancing down the hall. Downstairs, she told her parents that she was staying with Luna that night, showed them the bag as if to clarify, took her coat out of the front coat-closet, and rushed outside. Once a few blocks away from her house, she held out her thumb.
'BANG!' The Knight Bus appeared before her and she grinned. Getting aboard, Ginny told the driver her destination, "Diagon Alley." This was her first ride on the Knight Bus, and she was fascinated, as well as nauseated by all the movement. Soon it pulled to a stop in front of the Leaky Cauldron and she climbed out, thanking him politely.
"No problem Little Miss Weasley."
She frowned and shook her head. Damn red hair...family trademark. Her small hand clutched tightly around the handle of her overnight bag, Ginny entered the Leaky Cauldron. Inside, quite a few people were sitting around drinking, and most of them were way past drunk! She really wished Sirius had told her exactly where to meet him! Continuing on, she searched the crowd for him. No sign. But wait! He was still considered dead to the wizarding world! Oh no...if he walked around in his normal attire, they might recognize him and freak out...or if he's in a disguise, how will she recognize him! Suddenly reality hit her...and pretty hard at that. She was the one, single person in the entire world that knew Sirius Black was really alive! Wow.
"Well, he did tell me to meet him in Diagon Alley, so why don't I look there..." She muttered out loud, thankful for any excuse to be rid of these disgusting people.
So Ginny hurried towards the brick wall that was actually the entrance to Diagon Alley. Tapping the correct bricks in the exact sequence, she waited for it to reveal her destination. The wall shifted and the bricks slid away to form an arched entryway. She put her wand back into her coat pocket and stepped through. The bricks returned to their former shape behind her.
While wandering down Diagon Alley, searching for any sign of Sirius, a pair of arms grabbed her around the waist, spun her around, and lifted her up. Ginny stared, frightened, down at the person. It was a boy with wildly shaggy black hair and dancing blue-gray eyes. He was kind of tall and thin and was grinning innocently. She struggled against the boy, but to no avail.
"Hey there! You're cute, can I buy ya a drink?!" He quested boldly and sort of jokingly.
"No!" Ginny squirmed. "Put me down damn it!"
So he set her down, but kept his arms around her waist. "Awww, come on Ginny! Then do you mind if I give you this?" He leaned down and pressed a light kiss to her lips, his hair falling forward and tickling her cheeks, which was something Sirius's hair always did.
Ginny's breath caught in her throat and she felt sparks go off in her stomach. The odd thing was...this kid kissed like Sirius...
"Sirius! Oh shit! I've gotta find him!" She shoved the guy and started to run away, but he grabbed her arm and pulled her back.
"Ginny...do you really think that Sirius Black would walk around looking like himself...when everybody thought he was dead?" He asked.
"Y-you know my name..." She stuttered. Then it dawned on her that there was a very light scar on his neck, right below his jawline. A grin spread across her face. "Clever. But ya coulda warned me first 'Si'!" She gently touched the tiny scar, causing him to smile.
"So that's how you finally figured out it was me! Remember...I was very good at transfiguration and potions when I had to be!" The boy, who was actually Sirius Black in disguise, said.
Ginny nodded. "You make a cute teenage boy...maybe you should stay like that!"
"Hey!" He adopted a hurt tone, "Fine! If you think I'm so horribly old then..."
"No! I was joking!" She laughed, and soon he too broke into a smile.
"I know M'Love! I decided to make myself look about your age because then it wouldn't look suspicious with a little girl---no offense---kissing some old person!" Sirius explained, leaning down for another kiss.
Even while they stood kissing in the middle of Diagon Alley, Ginny's fingers lingered on his scar. She had to stand on her tiptoes to directly meet his lips with hers, which was a priceless sight in itself...a small redheaded girl on the very tips of her feet with one hand on the top of a boy's neck and the other lying on his chest, he had his eyes closed but hers were open and watching him as they kissed. Finally, they parted and stepped back form each other. Ginny's mouth was still slightly parted and Sirius's eyes were sparkling with glee. He slipped an arm around her shoulders and led her towards a small pet shop. Inside, there were many different types of animals. Right away, Ginny ran to the kittens.
"Aaawwwww! 'Si' aren't they cute!" She cooed, reaching in to pet a few of the small felines.
"Adorable..." He replied, rather plainly. But when he saw just how infatuated she was with the cats, he softened towards the furball creatures. A warm smile touched his lips and he knelt down next to Ginny. "Do you want one?" He asked gently.
She looked up at him, her crystal eyes wide. "Always have...but Mum won't let a cat in the house...she's allergic..." Her voice sounded so sad that Sirius felt like he was willing to do anything to cheer her up.
"Which one do you want Baby?" He placed a hand on her back and gestured to the cage.
"I c-can't get one!"
"Yes you can, 'Gin'. I'll keep it at my house and you can see it whenever you'd like!" Sirius informed her.
"Oh, 'Si'! Really?" She gazed lovingly at the kittens in front of her. "But...I thought you hated cats...?"
"I don't hate them, I just don't like them! But I'm willing to let one live with me, for you...please choose one."
Tears welled up in Ginny's eyes and she reached into the cage to pet all of them again. Then she carefully picked one up, took it out, and hugged it to her small chest. "This one. Thanks sooo much, really! I love you!"
"I love you too, now come on! I want to go home, this disguise is really starting to bug me!" He exclaimed, dragging her up to the front of the store.
He pulled some wizard money out of his pocket, paid for the kitten, and ushered her back out. Ginny still cuddling and baby-talking the kitten and Sirius tugging at a few stray locks of his temporarily black hair, the two made their way back to the Leaky Cauldron. They hurriedly went through the building and came out on the street in front of it. This time Sirius held out his thumb and the purple, triple-decker Knight Bus 'BANG'ed into the street. They sat on the top level, looking down at the street below them. The Knight Bus let them off a few blocks from Number Twelve, Grimmuald Place. Taking Ginny's free hand---she had placed the kitten in her bag and it was quiet happy there---Sirius walked with her to the front door of his grubby little house. Once in the entrance hall, she set down her overnight bag and the kitten hopped out. The tiny cat was charcoal-gray and very fluffy...it looked like a huge ball of dust with a tail and amber eyes was running around the house! Ginny giggled and even Sirius managed an amused grin.
He motioned to the ceiling, "I'm gonna go upstairs and change back to normal! Be right back!"
Ginny nodded and took one last look at the messy black hair and crystalic-steel eyes. Then Sirius headed upstairs. When he returned, he found Ginny sitting in the living room with the kitten on her lap. She was on the couch in front of the empty fireplace. Sirius pointed his wand at the hearth, whispered a spell, and a fire appeared. She startled, but looked up at him and smiled, still petting the kitty. He sauntered over and took the cat from her. After setting the feline on one of the armchairs, he joined her on the couch. She folded her legs under herself and scooted closer. Snuggling up to him, Ginny sighed. She found her eyes drawn, once again, to the scar. She touched it and he shivered at her gentle touch. Sirius snatched her hand and brought it to his lips, kissing each of her fingertips, then her palm, and down her arm until he reached her yellow tank-top. She smiled and glanced up at him. His dark eyes now replaced the fake blue-gray ones and his hair was the correct length, color, and style...well, it didn't really have a style, it just kind of fell flat. Her other hand found his hair and she tugged lightly at it. He smiled behind the last kiss on her arm and leaned his head forward onto her budding chest. Sirius could vaguely smell her honeysuckle-scented perfume and the clean, soapy smell of her shampoo. Those scents enticed him, and he moved his hands to her shoulders, slipping them under the straps of her tank-top. He slid them down around her shoulders, along with her pale-peach-colored bra straps. Placing a soft kiss on her bare shoulder, he breathed in deeply, wanting to memorize everything about her...her long copper hair, her sweet flowery scent, her slightly chocolaty breath...
"Sirius...?" Her hands still buried in his hair, Ginny pulled his face away from her neck and gazed lovingly at him. "You alright?"
"Yes, fine." Was his slightly hoarse reply.
"OK..." She cast her blue eyes around the room, noticing that the only light came from the blazing fire, for the curtains were shut and no lights were on.
Again, Sirius's lips were grazing across her neck, and this time they made their way to her throat and down to the area above her breasts, where he stopped and looked up at her questioningly. She had her eyes closed and was biting her bottom lip hard enough to leave small marks for a few moments. Not wanting her to make her lip bleed, he distracted her from biting it by taking her mouth in a kiss. She stopped biting her bottom lip and returned the passionate kiss. His tongue darted across her lips and she opened her mouth a little. Taking the chance, he slid his tongue between her parted lips. Her tongue tapped his and she smiled...as much as the kiss would allow her to smile. Soon Ginny felt his hand creeping up the back of her shirt. She also felt him undo the latch of her bra and pull his hands out of her shirt to slide the bra off. Without even thinking, she let him. Sirius tossed the bra on the floor and continued to kiss her. His hands returned to her back, where he gently massaged her lower-back. He then trailed his fingers around her sides and to her chest. Cupping a breast in each hand, Sirius removed his lips from hers. He nuzzled her neck and shoulder, sucking here, nipping there. A thin gasp escaped her and she squeezed her eyes shut. Suddenly concerned about what she was doing, Ginny pulled back completely and got off the couch, while adjusting her shirt. She spotted her bra on the ground, but disregarded it easily...that wasn't what was wrong. It was the fact that she had felt as if she'd let Sirius do whatever he wanted at that moment, which wasn't something they should do! If anything too sexual happened between the two, it definitely wouldn't lead to very good things for either her or Sirius.
"Something wrong? Did I hurt you?" Sirius looked up at her, confusion and concern glimmering in his deep eyes.
"No, "She replied, "Nothing's wrong exactly...everything is perfect. But...we can't..."
"Can't what Babe? Oh..." He ran a hand through his lank hair and sighed heavily. "No, I guess you're right...we can't do that, can we?" Also standing up, he put a hand on her shoulder. "Why don't we go to bed? It's kinda late." He brushed a kiss on the top of her head and gave her a soft push towards the stairs. "I'll be up in a minute."
"OK. Can I sleep with you?" She saw his head snap up. "I mean...sleep in your bed with you?"
He nodded. "Of course. Go on." Watching her scamper upstairs, another sigh made its way out of him. Sirius paced around the living room, his arms crossed. 'What happened? God...I sure hope I haven't scared her. The poor girl's only 15.' He thought, leaving the living room to approach the stairs that lead to the bedrooms of Grimmauld Place.
†
Ginny dug around in Sirius's bathroom, finally finding his razor. Tears were making their way down her face as she carefully rolled up her right pant leg. 'I hurt Sirius! He wanted me and I wouldn't let him do it! I should feel pain too!' Thoughts like that flew around in her confused young mind. She'd had these moments before, and they were not welcomed ones, but they also weren't thoughts that she could ignore. The images and frantic voice in her head forced her to do these things, she wished she wasn't so devoted to her Sirius...'Yes, my Sirius. And if I want to keep my Sirius, I can't hurt him...and if I do, I have to pay!' Her brain screamed at her while she raised the razor and sobbed harder. As the razor made contact with her skin, she sniffled. Ginny could feel the blade slide over her thigh. The cool metal stung the fresh cut and blood slid down her leg. It left a scarlet trail from the top of her thigh to her knee, where it puddled in her hand that was cupped there to catch the blood. Just then, the bathroom door swung open and someone gasped and yelled her name.
"Ginny!"