Chapter 04: The Marauders and a Blossoming Love

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If Ginny and the twins were surprised with the changes in Harry's appearance, they were absolutely dumbstruck over the conversation that had just finished. It had been an hour since Ron had come and pulled them out of the kitchen and back up to his room for what he termed, "a friendly chat."

Harry, Ron, and Hermione had outlined their plan to the rest.

"That's absolutely brilliant!" George said.

"I agree. But the Marauders? I don't know. I mean, they're legends." Fred said. The terrible trio exchanged amused glances.

"I don't think they'll mind." Ron said with a smirk.

"How do you know?" Ginny asked.

"Because we know them!" Harry, Ron, and Hermonie exclaimed in unison. They then began to relate the story of the identity of the Marauders, including the truth about Sirius Black, Harry's godfather.

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"I still can't believe you've known the identity of the Marauders for two years and never told us." Fred said.

"We couldn't." Hermione said. "Too much was at stake."

"So what do you guys say? Are you in?" Harry asked. Fred, George and Ginny exchanged looks.

"Definitely!" they said, together.

"Good." Harry said, pulling a piece of parchment out of his pocket. "This is the Marauder oath. I based it on the one the original group had, except its now a binding magical contract. If you break it, you'll be hexed into next Tuesday. Everybody read it and then sign if you want to." The group looked at the contract.

We the undersigned, henceforth to be known as the Marauders, do solemnly swear to uphold the Marauder name. We will play practical jokes on all except our own number, but especially on the Slytherens.

We swear that we will never divulge the identity of our fellow Marauders even if we ourselves are caught.

To this we attest.

One by one they all signed the parchment.

"What about nicknames?" Fred asked.

"Well, the original Marauders had nicknames based on their animagus forms." Hermione said.

"But none of us are animagus." Ginny protested.

"Maybe I can ask Sirius to teach us. I'm sure he'll be eager to help." Harry said. The others brightened at this. "Then it's agreed. Once school starts, the Marauders shall ride again."

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Later that night Harry was unable to sleep. Quietly getting out of bed so as not to wake Ron, he threw his cloak on over his pajamas and tip toed down stairs. To his surprise he was not the only one awake. Ginny was sitting in an armchair near the fireplace in the living room.

"Couldn't sleep either?" she asked.

"No. Too much on my mind." Harry replied.

"Same here. Do you want to go for a walk outside?"

"Sure." Ginny rose and grabbed her cloak. Together they walked outside and began to wander down to the creek near the house. It was a quiet night. They talked about some of the events of the last few years, their hopes and worries. Not for the first time Harry found himself reflecting on how amazingly easy it was to talk to Ginny now. They spent hours talking about school, their hopes and dreams, and the war that both knew was sure to come now that Voldemort was back.

As they walked, Harry couldn't help but notice how pretty Ginny looked in the moonlight. And how utterly content he felt with her at the moment. The a realization hit him. He was falling in love with Ginny. Panic at this realization swept through him; he had not had much experience with love and so was somewhat unsure of how to handle it. Glancing over at Ginny he felt the panic drain away. He stopped suddenly, and Ginny turned back to him.

"Is something wrong?" she asked. Harry stepped closer to her.

"Ginny, I want to apologize for ignoring you the last four years." Harry said. "The last couple of months we've been owling each other has made me realized what a great friend you are. I wish I'd realized it sooner." Ginny looked up at him.

"It's okay Harry. I guess if the situation was reversed I'd be a little put off by my best friend's kid brother with a huge crush on me too."

"Does that mean you don't have one anymore?" Harry asked, a hint of disappointment in his voice. Ginny caught it immediately.

Dear lord, he sounds as if he was hoping I still did. She felt a blush rising up in her body. She stepped a little closer to him.

"Yes." She replied.

"Oh, well ok then." Harry said, his head slowly hanging. Ginny's heart nearly broke at the look of sadness on his face.

"I don't have a crush anymore. I think I love you." Ginny blurted out. Harry's head shot up. "It's okay if you don't feel anything back, but I needed to tell you." Harry was speechless. Now it was Ginny's turn to hang her head and shift about.

"Ginny, look at me." Harry said. She looked up. "Ever since the end of last year, I've been having some very confusing thoughts and emotions. I never experienced what it was like to grow up with people who love me, so I'm not even sure I know what love is. But I realized that I missed you. And then after we started owling, I found myself looking forward to your letters more than Ron or Hermione's. Then when I saw you earlier tonight, it hit me. What I'm trying to say Ginny, is that I'm falling for you."

Ginny gazed in amazement. She never though she would here those words from Harry Potter. Tears of happiness began to form in her eyes. Harry saw this and reached out and pulled her towards him. He gazed into her brown eyes for what seemed like hours, before gently reaching his hand to her chin and tilting her head towards his.

Ginny closed her eyes as Harry's lips made contact with hers. She felt a rush of heat flash from his lips to hers and travel the length of her body. They stood locked in passionate embrace for several minutes before pulling apart.

"Wow." Ginny said.

"Wow." Harry agreed.