A/N: Since all my reviewers are my LOTR following, I will tell you something amusing (other than the battle I'm having to stay at Hogwarts and not slip back to Rohan, that is). Got majorly in the mood for romantic fluff last night and reread No Mistake and By The Book. Then today I started rereading the Elfwine Chronicles (I'm about halfway through them). So as I'm driving home from the grocery, listening to an oldies station, what comes on but the song "The Streak" by Ray Stevens (if you've never heard it, it's hysterical)! I would have been rolling on the floor laughing but that's hard to do in a car. Anyway, I'll try to get my mind back on Harry Potter, at least until I get this story finished! Then I have a feeling Rohan will get me back, whether they want me or not!

Chapter 6

Between classes, homework and Quidditch practice, Harry didn't find a spare moment to really sit and think about what he wanted to say to Ginny. Nevertheless, he hurried to the Dark Arts classroom at a quarter of five to be there before Ginny arrived. Only once he was there, and waiting anxiously for her arrival, did it occur to him he should have thought to get her flowers or candy or something. Girls liked that sort of thing, it seemed. But it was too late now and there was nothing to be done about it.

He was startled out of his reverie by Professor Watson telling him softly, "Here she comes."

With a quick gulp, he stepped back into a dark corner of the room where he wouldn't readily be seen.

Ginny knocked at the open door and was summoned in.

Moving to close the door behind the girl, Professor Watson told her, "I expect you're wondering why I asked you to see me."

Looking slightly nervous, Ginny nodded, "Did I do something wrong?"

"No, not at all," Professor Watson hastened to assure her. She thought for a moment, then explained, "Normally I wouldn't involve myself in such matters, but I thought it worthwhile in this particular instance."

Ginny was giving her a puzzled look, not really sure what she was talking about, so she continued, "I understand that recently something happened that caused a rift between you and one of your friends. Your friend is most anxious to apologize and make amends, but you have been reluctant to allow it." Ginny's brows knit in perplexity as to where this was going. "I can't make you believe him, or trust him, but please, at least hear what he has to say so that you will know the whole story."

At the mention of 'he', Ginny got a dreadful feeling what this might be about – or more precisely, who. At a sound behind her, her head whipped around to find Harry standing sheepishly watching her. Her eyes narrowed in anger, a look Harry had seen on more than one occasion, though usually not directed at him.

"Ginny, please, just listen. I didn't mean to hurt you. I really thought you'd be reacting the same way I was when I kissed you. It wasn't until you got upset at me for apologizing that I realized…that I realized neither one of us was sorry it happened. I kept thinking I shouldn't be kissing Ron's sister, I mean especially since that practically makes you my sister, but then I realized you weren't my sister and I had wanted to kiss you and I liked it. Ron and the rest of your brothers will probably kill me when they find out, but I like you Ginny – a lot. And I'd like to kiss you again, and hold your hand and…not be your 'brother' anymore."

He ran out of ideas for what to say and came to a halt. He was suddenly aware that Professor Watson seemed to have disappeared though he hadn't noticed her leaving. He eyed Ginny questioningly, waiting for her reaction, about half expecting a Bat-Bogey Hex to hit him any minute. But it didn't, and the next thing he knew, Ginny had launched herself at him and had her lips firmly planted on his. Once the shock wore off, he wrapped his arms around her and returned it with feeling.

xxxxx

It was only later that Harry really appreciated Professor Watson choosing Friday as the day for him to confront Ginny. Not only did it mean they didn't have classes the next day and could stay up later talking, and doing a bit of kissing, but it was also the Saturday of the Hogsmeade visit.

More and more Harry and Ginny had been spending time together, and after their adventure at the Department of Mysteries, Ginny was included more in their conversations. Consequently, neither Ron nor Hermione noticed when Ginny accompanied them to Hogsmeade. They were so wrapped up in each other, and having time off from their prefect duties, that they didn't even notice the looks the two were giving each other or the times they held hands.

Harry and Ginny had something of a bet going about which one would notice first and when. Harry was still a bit worried about Ron's reaction when he found out, but Ginny assured him that she could handle her brother.

It wasn't until the Halloween feast a few days later that Hermione finally realized that something was different, and nudged Ron to bring it to his attention. She was watching Harry and Ginny, their heads bent together, laughing about something. That alone was not too unusual, but Harry had his arm around Ginny's shoulders. It took a few moments for Ron to catch on to what Hermione wanted him to see, but when Ginny kissed Harry's cheek and laid her head on his shoulder, there could be little doubt something was going on. A moment later, they turned to glance at the others and found Ron staring, his mouth hanging open, while Hermione's eyes had gone very wide in astonishment. The two of them burst out laughing at the silly expressions, and finally Hermione recovered enough to ask, "When did this happen?"

Ginny reached her arms around Harry's waist and answered, "A few days ago. We were wondering how long it would take for you two to catch on."

Harry was eyeing Ron carefully for any sign of anger, but there was only a pleased grin on his friend's face. "It's about time, Harry! Now Ginny will stop dating those other gits!"

Harry broke into relieved laughter, and Ginny joined him.

xxxxx

Becoming a couple rather than just friends didn't change a great deal in Harry or Ginny's daily routine, other than they found it more difficult to concentrate on studying when the other was near, and they found it essential to break often for a quick kiss.

Harry couldn't fathom why he had never noticed Ginny before. Now everything about her seemed to stand out and win his admiration. It had never been like this with Cho Chang. As infatuated as he was with Cho, he had never felt as at ease with her as he did with Ginny. And for the first time in quite awhile, he felt happy. Voldemort was still out there, he still had to return to the Dursleys and Sirius was still dead, but now someone was standing at his side, holding his hand. He didn't feel isolated, as he had so much of the time, even with Ron and Hermione. Ron was often oblivious to his feelings, and Hermione tried to analyze everything he told her, but Ginny just accepted him, and let him know that he wasn't alone.

Even the colder, wetter weather of November and December couldn't dampen his spirits.

As it drew nearer to Christmas, Harry found himself wondering how Professor Watson was going to spend the time. She had never mentioned any family, and he hoped that didn't mean she would stay at Hogwarts simply because she had nowhere else to go.

He finally worked up the nerve to visit her after his classes a week before the holiday break. At his knock, she looked up from her work and smiled, "Come in, Harry! What brings you here?"

"I just wanted to wish you Happy Christmas, in case I didn't get a chance later on," he answered.

"Thank you. You too."

"So, are you planning on staying at Hogwarts or are you going somewhere?" he asked, trying to appear nonchalant.

She laughed mirthlessly and replied, "No, no, no...I'm not staying here! I really don't have family to go visit, but if I stay here I'll have Snape dogging my steps every waking moment. I don't think I could quite manage that! Maybe I'll just take a room at the Leaky Cauldron for the duration. I could do with a bit of shopping. And maybe I'll explore Muggle London."

He laughed along with her and then told her, "Well, I hope you have a good time, wherever you end up."

She smiled, "I appreciate that."

It looked as though she might ask about his plans so he hastily said, "Well, Ginny's waiting for me. I'll see you later."

She cocked an eyebrow at him as he scurried for the door, but then shrugged it off and returned to her work.

Harry headed to Dumbledore's office, formulating in his mind his argument to persuade him to let Harry invite Professor Watson to spend Christmas at Grimmauld Place. At least then she wouldn't be alone, and she could see Remus again. He had never mentioned to her that he was in contact with Remus, mainly because there was no indication she knew about the Order of the Phoenix, and explaining his connection to Remus and why Remus was living in Sirius' old family home could prove difficult.

Fortunately the password had not changed since his last visit, and he rose with the staircase to Dumbledore's office door. He took a deep breath and knocked, and a moment later Dumbledore stood before him. "Harry? To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit? Nothing wrong, I hope."

"No, sir. I, er...wanted to talk to you about Professor Watson," he stammered.

"What about her?" the headmaster questioned, waving him in and to a chair.

"Well, um...I was wondering if it would be okay to invite her to Grimmauld Place for Christmas. She doesn't have anywhere to go and doesn't want to stay here over the holiday. And I think she and Remus might like to see each other again. They were friends at school." He paused while Dumbledore sat down and studied his steepled fingers. Then Harry blurted out, "I really think we can trust her, Professor; to know about the Order, I mean. And she could be a lot of help to us, too."

Dumbledore raised a halting hand, smiling over his half moon glasses, "Relax, Harry. You do not have to convince me of her trustworthiness – it is one of the reasons I sought her out to be the Defense teacher this year. Apparently you are not aware that she was in the original Order of the Phoenix. The only reason she isn't presently a member is we were unable to locate her when the group reformed. And since then, she has been dealing with a number of personal issues so that I did not want to burden her with more. I don't think you realize that she is likely to have an emotional response, to the Order and to Remus, similar to those you witnessed when she first came to Hogwarts. There is much in her past that you still do not know."

He paused while Harry contemplated his words, then he added, "However, I am willing to reintroduce her to the Order so that you can invite her if you like. Just be aware that it may not go quite as you think it will."

Harry nodded his understanding and Dumbledore stood. Stepping to the fire he threw some Floo powder into it and called, "Aurelia, may I see you in my office please?"

A moment later, Professor Watson stepped from the flames, dusting the soot off her clothes. "Yes, headmaster?"

Before he could respond, she noticed Harry sitting nearby and looked at him quizzically. "Is there a problem?" she added, turning back to face Dumbledore.

"No, not at all. Please have a seat." When they both had taken a chair, he smiled at her, "I have been trying to reveal things to you gradually, in order to better help you adjust to them. I'm afraid I now have the task of springing something else on you."

The smile had faded from her face and she was watching him with some trepidation, "Such as?"

"Hopefully it is nothing too traumatic but, as you might have guessed, The Order of the Phoenix was reformed when Voldemort regained his body. Harry, while still too young to be an active member of it yet, is aware of many of its activities – for obvious reasons – as are the Weasley children and Hermione Granger."

Some of the tension in her face eased. "I'm not surprised by that, no."

"The other part is that Harry will be going to the headquarters for the Order to spend his Christmas, and has asked if it would be all right to invite you to come as well, so you don't have to spend it here or alone somewhere else. You should know, however, that Sirius gave us the use of his family manor, which he inherited upon the death of his parents, as our headquarters. Harry, of course, associates the place with Sirius and so it is not his favorite place, but perhaps you have no particular feeling about it one way or the other. I don't believe any of Sirius' friends ever visited his home while he was in school."

She shook her head. "No. He didn't want to be there himself; he certainly wasn't going to take any of us there. I don't even think James ever went with him." Her voice trailed off and she sat considering the offer. Finally, she looked up at Dumbledore, "You don't think it will be a problem – too close of a student-teacher relationship?"

"I do not see that anyone needs to be told. You can merely say you visited friends over the holidays and Harry can do the same. Few will be any the wiser. Severus and Minerva are the only ones who might drop by from the school, other than the Weasleys or Miss Granger, that is."

A muscle twitched in her cheek at the mention of Snape, but she suppressed any comment she might have made. Turning to Harry she simply said, "Thank you for the offer, Harry. I would be happy to share Christmas with you."

Harry's face broke into a grin and Dumbledore told them, "After the students leave on the train, come to my office and you can Floo there from here."

xxxxx

Because Harry wanted it to be a surprise, he didn't tell Professor Watson about Remus or vice versa. For some reason, he had never mentioned her to Remus. Maybe it was because her memories of his parents seemed to shake her up so much when she first came to Hogwarts, that he was afraid what Remus' reaction might be to her. He just hoped he wasn't making a big mistake, and that they would be pleased to see one another after all this time. She had never said much about her relationship with Remus, but it didn't seem as though she had interacted with him and Peter so much as she had with his dad and Sirius. But from some of the adventures Sirius had dragged her into, that involved the other two, he felt like she must have known him fairly well.

When he told Ginny what he had done, her face scrunched up in thought. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"Nothing. I was just thinking...you said she didn't seem to know Remus is a werewolf. If she's there over Christmas, it will be hard to keep it from her. The full moon is on the 26th."

That hadn't occurred to Harry, and he wondered what to do about it. Finally he said, "Well, we'll get there on the 20th. That gives us a few days and if Remus doesn't want her to know, I'll make up some excuse to get her out of the house that night. Maybe we can come visit you guys at the Burrow, or maybe I can talk her into staying at the Leaky Cauldron and seeing Muggle London like she mentioned. I'll think of something."

She smiled up at him and gave him a hug, "Well, I think it's really sweet of you to invite her. I hope it works out well and that they're glad to see each other. Oh, and by the way, is it okay if I ask Mum if we can come visit you for a couple of days and exchange gifts?"

"Of course," he told her with pleasure. "That house is so gloomy, the more the merrier."