It was time. Finally, time. Harry sighed with relief as the huge school clock chimed the hour, and slipped out of bed.
He dressed quietly, hoping that Ginny would have done the same and not stayed in her nightwear. He expected them to be back only in time for breakfast.
A noise behind him made him turn quickly, his heart pounding, but it was only Ron, talking in his sleep. Again. Harry sighed with relief and almost laughed aloud before he remembered that the point was to be as quiet as possible.
As he tied his laces, he remembered how Ginny had looked sitting by the fire the evening before, and his heart almost burst with love. He had finally admitted his love to her, and she had not pushed him away.
Harry opened the door quietly, willing it not to creak and give him away. There was a slight noise as he pulled up the latch, and Neville rolled over. Harry edged out of the door, not daring to breathe in case he was noticed, and then closed it quietly behind him.
He almost forgot to breathe while tiptoeing down the stairs, until he suddenly felt dizzy and had to stop. Mentally hitting himself for being so stupid, he shook his head and carried on down the stairs to the common room.
As he came through the doorway into the room, he could see a shape in the corner. A dark shadow, pressed against the wall. He approached gingerly, trying not to be seen, and then gasped as the figure turned its head to look at him.
Its eyes caught the fire light as it turned, and they glowed like cat's eyes. Something stirred in Harry's memory, and he remembered Ginny's eyes the night before.
"Ginny?" he whispered. "Is that you?"
Ginny stepped out of the corner, looking petrified. "Oh, Harry, I didn't know who it was! You scared me so much!"
Harry laughed quietly and approached her. She clung to his arm and would not budge until he turned his face to hers and kissed her softly. She released him to run her hands gently through his hair and to kiss him back.
When they finally let go of one another, Ginny was smiling.
"Come on," she said, happily, "Let's go and find somewhere else to do this!"
Harry grinned and followed her out of the portrait hole.
It was colder outside the common room- there was no fire out here to keep them warm. Ginny moved to Harry's side, and they walked together for extra warmth.
"Where shall we go?" Ginny whispered.
"Room of Requirement?" Harry asked her, moving closer to her to warm himself up.
The two of them found the room quite easily, and opened the door, gasping at the sight.
Red, heart shaped cushions lined the walls, and the room was warm and cosy. There were roses scattered on the floor, and four poster bed stood in the middle of the room.
Harry looked at the floor, embarrassed. "Erm…" he started.
Ginny laughed. "No, we won't be using the bed!" she said. "I can't believe you even thought that!"
Harry turned red and could not quite meet her eyes, until she kissed him again, more passionately this time.
"I've always wanted to do that," she said, softly, when they parted.
"Well, you can do it any time you want!" Harry replied, taking her to him again in a warm embrace. "I love you, Ginny," he whispered, stroking her hair.
Ginny smiled. "I love you too…" she whispered back.
They stayed like that for a long time, embracing, and then fell back on the cushions and talked quietly. Ginny soon fell asleep, her head on Harry's shoulder, but Harry stayed awake, stroking her hair and not quite believing his good fortune.
When the rising bell rang, it shocked them both out of their dreamy state and into their full senses.
Waking, Ginny sat up, and whispered urgently, "Harry, if we're caught here, we'll be dead! We've got to go to breakfast, and pretend we both went early and met each other there!"
Harry nodded silently.
"And please don't tell anyone, especially not Ron…" Ginny stopped at the look on Harry's face. "Okay, okay, I can see you weren't going to!"
Harry laughed and kissed Ginny again, before rising and opening the door.
Ginny smiled at him fondly and they both headed to the Great Hall for breakfast.