The Fundamental Things
By Chocolatequeen
Summary: Sometimes, a kiss is just a kiss. Will Ginny accept that explanation, or will Harry have to tell her more?
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all the characters belong to Rowling. The song lyrics at the bottom are by Herman Hupfeld.
There is a time for rational discussion, and there is a time for action. Finding your best mate kissing your girlfriend definitely falls under the second heading, Ron decided grimly as he rubbed his sore knuckles. "I trusted you!" he bellowed. "How could you do this to me, or to Ginny?" he interrogated, gesturing out the door the redhead had escaped through as soon as they'd realized exactly what they'd walked in on. Without giving either of them a chance to answer, he threw another quick punch, this one hitting Harry square on the nose and breaking his glasses.
"Petrificus Totalus!" Hermione shouted, pointing her wand at Ron.
Harry stepped back from his petrified friend, eyeing the scene as best he could without his glasses. "Thanks," he said, "but do you think next time you could stop him before he breaks my glasses?"
She threw him a disgruntled look. "I'm rather hoping that there won't be a next time," she said pointedly. "Now, since we have Ron's full and undivided attention, why don't you explain to him exactly what happened?"
Harry grimaced slightly and looked back at Ron. "Believe it or not, this was not our fault." Anger flashed in Ron's eyes, making it quite clear that he did not believe it. "I'm telling the truth," Harry insisted. "We were just sitting here--Hermione was making me study for N.E.W.T.S--"
"They're only three weeks away, Harry!"
"--and we heard some giggling 4th years walking down the hall. They were talking about getting someone to kiss them and--"
"How do you know what they were talking about?" Hermione questioned, surprised that he'd overheard their conversation.
"Well, to be honest I was getting sick of studying and I was trying to find something to distract me," Harry admitted guiltily.
She narrowed her eyes in displeasure. "I knew it! I knew you weren't paying attention! How do you think you're going to make it as an Auror if--"
"Hermione. Do you think we could get on with this explanation?" Harry cut in.
"Oh. Right. If they were talking about getting someone to kiss them, then I think I know what charm they were practicing," she contemplated.
"Really?"
"Yes, I think I heard one of them say basio," she told him.
Harry raised an eyebrow. "The Kissing Charm? No wonder..."
"Exactly," Hermione agreed. Turning to Ron, she asked, "Do you believe us?" The anger had faded from his eyes and he blinked quickly. "Good. Finite Incantatem," she said, releasing him from the spell.
"Sorry about that mate," Ron said, gesturing to Harry's glasses. "Guess I need to learn to ask questions first," he added, laughing sheepishly.
Ron's laughter dispelled the remaining tension, and Harry and Hermione quickly joined in. "Nah, I reckon I would have done the same thing if I'd caught some prat kissing Ginny," Harry admitted, picking piece of his glasses up off the floor.
"Here, let me," Ron offered, pointing his wand at the crooked frame dangling from his friend's ear. "Reparo."
"Thanks," Harry said. "I'd better go find Ginny," he realized, glancing at the door nervously.
"Oh yeah. Just a word of advice, don't petrify her first--it'll just make her angrier."
"Got it," he said, racing out of the room and to the one place he figured his girlfriend might have gone. I hope she gives me a chance to explain, he thought miserably as he made his way across the grounds to the Quidditch pitch.
When he got there, she was standing in the middle of the field, her arms wrapped around herself as if to ward off cold, despite the warm spring day. His heart twisted a little at the sign of vulnerability, and he cautiously took a step toward her. "Ginny?" he questioned.
"Go away Harry," she said in a low voice. "I don't much want to talk to you right now."
"Ginny, if that was true, you wouldn't have come here," he pointed out. "You had to know this would be the first place I'd look. Please, I can explain..."
She whirled on him, her hair flying around her. "Oh please Harry, explain to my why I just caught my boyfriend locking lips with my brother's girlfriend. I'd love to hear this," she bit out sarcastically.
Harry gazed at her steadily. "I promise Ginny, there's a perfectly reasonable explanation for this, but before I tell you... I need you to trust me." Because there's something else I want to tell you first, but you'll never listen unless you trust me, he added silently.
"Trust you?" she echoed incredulously.
"Yes. You know me, you know I'd never lie to you, don't you?" When she nodded slowly, he continued. "Then if I say I can make sense of this whole mess, will you believe me?" she nodded again, even slower this time. "Ok. Sometimes, a kiss is just a kiss."
Ginny stared at him, waiting for him to say something else, but when he didn't, she shook her head. "Is that all?" she asked, disappointed.
"Give me a moment, will you?" he requested, shoving his hands through his hair. "I'm trying to tell you something important and... What I mean is, a kiss always has certain... fundamentals--lips, arms..."
"I get the picture Harry," Ginny said shortly. I got the picture when I saw your lips on Hermione's, she thought, wincing as her mind replayed the scene.
"Right," he said, blushing. "Anyway, sometimes, that's all it is--just a kiss. Kissing Hermione was just a kiss."
"And what's kissing me?" she asked warily, afraid of the hope those words gave her.
"Kissing you is... kissing you... oh bloody hell," Harry muttered, giving up trying to explain and deciding to show her instead. Taking her hands, he pulled her to him and wrapped one arm around her waist, holding her securely against his body. With his free hand, he brushed her hair away from her face and stroked her cheek until her eyes closed, almost against her will. Placing his hand beneath her chin, he tilted her face up and leaned in, placing one, two, three feather light kisses on her lips before he felt her sigh and start to kiss him back.
Groaning, he pulled her even closer and poured everything he was feeling into the kiss. There was the tenderness and passion Ginny was used to, but there was something else too... something sharper and yet sweeter at the same time.
After several long moments, Harry pulled back and looked down at her, swiping his thumb across her bottom lip. "Did you feel that?" he whispered.
Unable to speak, she just nodded.
"When I kiss you, I can believe that something good is going to happen in my life, that I'm not going to be trapped in this battle forever." Understanding flashed in her eyes; he had told her about the prophecy, and she knew that he struggled to see past that.
"Kissing you is a promise for the future," he told her, pausing before finishng the thought. It might be too much, but he wanted to tell her. He needed to tell her. He glanced away for a moment and then looked back at her, saying, "Sometimes, when I kiss you, I think I see a little boy who looks just like me... except he has his mother's brown eyes."
Staring into those eyes, Harry knew exactly when she realized what he was saying. Her mouth opened slightly as she took a quick indrawn breath and said, "You see... all that, when you kiss me?"
"I do," he confessed softly.
"And the kiss... when you kissed Hermione, there's a logical answer to that?" she asked.
"Yeah... we were just--"
"Harry."
"Yes Ginny?" he replied, confused and a little worried. Why wouldn't she let him explain?
"Just kiss me... kiss me like you did a moment ago." He was confused, but he obliged. For her part, Ginny knew she'd hear the story soon, but she trusted Harry... and right now, here in his arms, she thought she heard a little boy laugh.
And when two lovers woo
they still say, "I love you;"
on that you can rely--
No matter what the future brings--
As time goes by.
AN: Yes, I know the song actually says that "A kiss is still a kiss," but saying that a kiss is just a kiss worked so much better for the story. I hope you enjoyed this, it was the first HP fic I've written and it all came to me between the hours of 2 and 5 in the morning... annoying night owl muse. Thanks for reading.