AN: This is chapter contains strong sexual content between female characters. I wrote it for myself one night, then decided to post it. If you've read my other stories, this is nothing like those, so just be warned. Enjoy.
The Stars Are Black and Cold
Chapter 1: Connection
The lights were dim in the Leaky Cauldron. The lights were kept dim everywhere now, but in this place, the darkness was penetrating. Not only that, but the silence of it all. Few spoke loudly now, there just wasn't reason to. She sat on a stool at the bar, staring at her glass. The bartender asked if she wanted another while she waited. It wasn't Tom anymore, she didn't know this man's name. No, she didn't want another drink. She didn't have the money for another, even if she had wanted one.
Ginny entered the pub, her dark cloak pulled close to hide her red hair. She was wanted, but the rain was hard this night, so no one would be out looking. She slipped into the seat next to the other woman, whose hair, now cut short and dyed black, wasn't much of a disguise.
"You're late," Hermione whispered. There words would be few while in the open. She too was hunted, and she wanted to stay alive to fight another day.
"It was raining," the younger woman said. Hermione turned, looked at the red hair that peaked out from under the cloak. She would still be in school if . . . She couldn't let herself complete the thought, if it wasn't all gone.
Ginny left a few gold coins on the counter. The bartender was good, not as good as Tom, but still. It was likely he would be dead within the week. He gave her the key to a room in silence, and she took it, letting Hermione see the number before leaving.
Hermione took the last gulp of her drink and left her last bronze coins on the counter. She would need to find another job soon, but tonight she needed to quench the fire that burned inside.
A few dull embers crackled in room 13, but there would be no maid to tend to them. The light couldn't be to bright, anyway. Ginny's black cloak lay on a chair so her long red hair could fall in her face. Hermione pulled her close, letting their mouths touch, tongues intertwine. Ginny worked to undo the buttons on Hermione's blouse. Hermione pulled away for a moment.
"Come on, love, I need this," Ginny said, her eyes blazing.
"Not so fast, cherie. We have all night." Slowly she undid her own skirt. Ginny smiled and followed suit, pulling off the worn sweater from a Christmas long passed. Her bra came next while Hermione was still caught in stockings and underwear. The sight of the small, pale breasts made her hurry just a little.
The cloths came off and were left on the floor, and the two women tumbled in to the bed, woollen blankets scratching at their bodies. Their bodies pressed against each other, fingers and tongues searched. Their hearts beat in perfect rhythm. The rise and fall of Hermione's chest matched the rocking of Ginny's body and they were in harmony.
The wind howled outside and the fire when out in their room, but they were dead to it. Ginny caught Hermione's dark hair in her hands, pulled her fingers through it. Hermione's own hands ran down Ginny's firm stomach and graceful thighs.
They spent hours in this perfect, passionate embrace, falling asleep against each other and continuing in their dreams. In Diagon Alley, just outside their window, a resistance fighter was captured. They were looking, even in the storm, they were looking. The two women wouldn't be safe here much longer. It would be weeks, maybe even months, before they would be able to do this again. They might need a new place, the newest bartender might ask more questions.
A rumble of thunder in the early morning woke them. They dressed in silence, Ginny careful to pull her red locks back out of sight. "Do you want me to darken them for you?" Hermione asked as she pulled on her boots.
"No. I couldn't stand it like that. Leaving them red is my own little resistance. That one day, the sun will rise, and we won't have to hide anymore. I can keep it covered easily enough, but every Weasley has had red hair. I can't bear to change it."
"Fine. But if anything happens to you, I don't know what I would do." She brushed the hair out of her eyes, then kissed Ginny softly on the cheek. "I'll see you soon, alright."
"Of course," Ginny replied and returned the tender kiss. She held her breath as Hermione Apperated, praying that no one heard the sound. Every means of exit had its risks, but she couldn't leave the way she came. It was only safe for one to do that. Checking her reflection in the mirror, she left the small room and went out into the rain, hoping that Charlie would be their when she returned. If he was, they were safe for another day. If not, the Dark Lord had found them, and all was finished.