Slow days at work were Lia's favorite simply because she had time to spend with the owls. She would often let more loose than usual when there hadn't been a lot of customers for a while simply because they had more room to fly around. It made it easier to work on training them, too; the small whistle had become her best friend. And it was fun, trying to get them to come back into their cubbies on demand. So far, she'd trained a total of three, which was an impressive task in itself, considering how stubborn most of these birds were.

Of course, she had her favorites, the most well-behaved owls that she'd keep out all day while she tried not to get too attached. It never worked, and she ended up screening people when they came in to decide which owl to recommend. During the year and through the summer, though, not many people were getting new owls. Most sales were right before term started.

That was the best time of year, when the children would come in wide-eyed and excited about what may be the coolest pet they'd ever owned. That had been her nearly a decade ago now, which made it so much more exciting that her first screech owl, Diana, was able to accompany her to work every day. She was getting towards the end of her life, so she didn't fly around as much as she did at Hogwarts, but Diana was content to hang out in her own private cubby, enjoying the toys, fluffy pillow, and unlimited treats Lia provided.

Honestly, she wondered how many kids she'd see in a few months and how many parents would be willing to send their children to Hogwarts (or back to Hogwarts for that matter) with everything that had gone on. They were still trying to track down some of the lost owls nearly a month later, and Lia had a bad feeling they weren't going to find them. But there wasn't much she could do except wait for their tracking spells to deliver results, so she'd come to training them as a way to keep her mind off things. Diana was well-behaved and didn't need any training, and Lia loved the way she judged the others from her perch, especially one in particular - a brown owl that Lia was so close to getting one trick out of.

As soon as the store was empty a little after noon, she turned to the owl she'd lovingly called Beans. She didn't name all of them, because that would be way too much work and further her attachment, but the ones she was training needed to stand out.

"Right, Beans. You've got this today, haven't you? You're gonna be good?" Beans just blinked at her as she untied his leg from the perch. "I'll take that as a yes, then." The owl's favorite spot was a perch by the window that was usually in the sun most of the day, which he made a beeline to any time he was free. He had even shooed Diana away once when she got too close.

Lia pulled the whistle out of her pocket, twirling it around her fingers. "Grand. So when I blow this, you're going to go back to your perch, right?" Beans sank lower into himself, and Lia groaned. "No, no sunning today! Not right now. I'll let you back if you do this. You're more likely to get adopted if you're trained. Harry Potter's not just going to come in here and buy all of you, is he? Artemis was lucky." The owl's eyes closed. "Fine," Lia sighed. "I was going to take a lunch anyway. Joke's on you."

She headed towards the back to get her lunch when the bell rang at the front of the store. "Coming!" Lia quickly called, trying not to be annoyed. There only needed to be one person in the store when it was slow, but she was quickly regretting not eating earlier.

She could have sworn the girl who entered the store was Ginny Weasley, but this was not the Ginny Weasley her friends knew. The most she'd heard about her was when she was in fourth year and the Chamber of Secrets was opened, Ginny having been taken into the Chamber and then spending some time in the Hospital Wing after Harry saved her. But she'd rebounded, apparently, making her presence known through the school with a handful of specialty spells.

But this girl… Lia smiled at her when she got up to the counter and barely got a response. She looked tired, lifeless. Expected, but definitely more affected by the war than Harry seemed to be. Then again, Harry had Hermione.

"Hi! How can I help you?"

Ginny seemed to take a few seconds to gather a response. "I, er… can I get some treats? Some small ones."

"Of course! How many bags?"

"Just… just one."

Lia nodded, turning away from the register to the treat shelf and pulling one bag off, placing it on the counter. "Is that all?"

"Mmhmm." Ginny's eyes were still on the floor, and it broke Lia's heart. She couldn't even imagine what all of them had to go through, being in the middle of it all.

"What's your owl's name?"

Ginny frowned a little but did finally look up at her. "Pig," she answered.

"Pig? That's a brilliant name for an owl. I love giving animals funny names. Like that one there?" Lia gestured towards the owl who was still sunning himself by the window. "He's called Beans."

"Beans?"

"Mmhmm."

Ginny's lips threatened to curl into a smile. "That's not his real name."

"It is, I swear! Beans!" she called, and the owl begrudgingly turned to look at her. Finally, Ginny grinned. "See? Pig and Beans. They could be friends."

"His name's actually Pigwidgeon," Ginny explained. "But Ron always calls him Pig, so it stuck. Do you name all of them?"

"No, not all of them. Some of the rescues come with names."

"Like Artemis? Doesn't sound like it's something you'd come up with after Beans. "

Lia laughed a little, leaning forward on the counter. "Ah, so you've met him?"

"Oh, he nearly destroyed our house. Knocked pictures off the walls and everything trying to find a way out when Harry came through the Floo."

"Harry took him through the Floo?" Lia gaped. "Not a quick learner, is he?"

Ginny smirked fondly. "How can you tell?"

"Based on everything those three got themselves into? I just graduated two years ago, but I can't imagine how the past couple have been, especially with… everything going on. I'm just glad they're all okay." Lia sighed, straightening back up. She wished everyone would have been okay. She wished that Fred would have been okay. She couldn't even imagine losing a brother like Ginny had. And poor George. Their entire family had to be suffering so much right now and there wasn't anything she could really do to help. After a few seconds of silence, she finally just handed over the bag of treats. "Here. Don't worry about these. On me."

"What? No, I can't-"

"On Harry, then. He made a donation," she teased. "There's some of it back."

Ginny managed to laugh a little. "Thanks. I'm sure he'll love that."

"Mister Generous? 'Course he will."

Another few seconds passed as it seemed like Ginny was trying to find something else to say. "Well, thanks again. I just… kind of needed to get out of the house," she said before turning to leave.

"I'm Lia, by the way," she blurted out suddenly, then cleared her throat. "If you, uh… ever want to get out of the house again. I'm usually here."

Ginny paused on her way out, turning back. "Lia?" Her eyes looked Lia up and down as if she were studying her. Not that Lia was complaining.

"Yeah, why?"

"Ginny. Er, I'm Ginny. Sorry. That's… what you're supposed to do when someone tells you their name." She took a deep breath, her eyes darting back down to the floor. "You don't fancy Harry by chance, do you?"

Lia laughed before she could stop herself. "What?! What makes you think that?!"

That seemed to put Ginny more at ease, and she started laughing, too, for what may have been the first time in weeks. "Hermione's insistent. She's been telling everyone she's not jealous, but she totally is. Their relationship is…"

"Complicated?" Ginny nodded. "I can tell. Seems like just about everyone's is now. But you can tell Hermione that Harry is definitely not my type and she has absolutely nothing to worry about."

Ginny raised an eyebrow. "You don't think he's attractive? That would be a new one."

Lia smirked, resting her hip on the counter as she looked over Ginny's face. There was something in her eyes. Some fire that had been dampened. "Okay, well, attractive, sure. Objectively good-looking." She paused a second, daring to look her up and down too. "But men in general aren't exactly my type, for the record. Not just Harry."

Ginny caught on quickly, as indicated by her cheeks turning the color of her hair as she averted her eyes from Lia's. After a moment, she finally said, "I'm not telling Hermione. Maybe some jealousy would be good for her. Serves her right."

"For what?"

"For thinking Harry has eyes for anyone except her," she sighed, running a hand through her hair. "That he ever has, honestly."

The air became a little more tense, and Lia took a moment to watch Ginny. She was good at hiding her emotions, Lia could already tell. She shouldn't be doing that at… how old was she? Sixteen?

"You like Harry, don't you?"

"No," Ginny answered defensively. "Well, not anymore. I did. But… I kissed him and..."

"Do you want to get lunch with me?" Lia asked, unsure of where the impulse came from, but not regretting it.

"Lunch?"

"Yeah. I was about to go on break anyway. You… kind of seem like you want to talk to someone."

Ginny's eyes widened in embarrassment. "Do I? Oh, no, I don't… I don't want to bother you on your lunch break…"

"It's fine. Really. I told you, you don't have to talk about anything. But everyone's been focused on The Golden Trio and frankly, I'm tired of them, you know?" Lia teased, and Ginny was smiling again. Blushing, but smiling. It was a good look on her. "I wanna hear about you . Come on." Lia quickly washed her hands, clocked out, and slung her bag over her shoulder. "Keep an eye on things, Diana! That's my owl - the tiny one," she explained as she flipped the open sign around and flicked her wand to lock the door behind her.

"She's adorable. Almost looks like Pig, except… rounder. When did you get her?"

"When I was eleven! Isn't that crazy? I wasn't as creative with names back then, clearly. Leaky Cauldron?"

"Sure." Ginny pulled her own bag closer.

"You don't have to be nervous, Ginny," Lia grinned. "Come on. Not like it's a date. Unless you want it to be."

"What?! N-No, I mean, I… I didn't think it was… I-"

"I'm kidding." She nudged Ginny with her shoulder, but Ginny's eyebrows just knitted together a little bit as she looked forward. "Look, honestly, just because I like girls doesn't mean-"

"I know," Ginny muttered. "I know girls have a type, too."

"Yeah?" Lia asked carefully, knowing the topic they'd left on in the store. "What's yours?"

Ginny let out a breathless laugh. "You know, I'm not even sure. I don't know that I really have one in particular. Why are we even talking about this?"

"Unless you'd rather talk about recent events?"

"No," she answered quickly. "I've only ever dated two guys. But… I liked Harry a lot."

"Why?"

"You're asking me about my type and offering to take me to lunch," Ginny chuckled. "Are you sure you're not trying to make this a date?"

"I said it wasn't a date if you didn't want it to be."

"Do you?"

"Do you ?"

"No," she answered quickly. "Sorry, that sounded harsh. I've just never… I don't think I… I mean I've never even thought about…"

"Dating a girl?"

"Yeah."

Lia shrugged. "Up to you, isn't it? Whether you want to or not?"

"I suppose."

Their conversation was interrupted as Lia pulled the door open of the Leaky Cauldron for Ginny and they made their way into a mostly empty seating area. That was to be expected, given it was the middle of a weekday, but Ginny couldn't be sure whether she enjoyed the privacy or not. She felt safe with Lia, though. She'd be fine.

Ginny definitely hadn't expected the day to end up like this when her mum had nearly begged her to leave the house. She really should be at Hogwarts - she knew that - but it didn't seem like Hogwarts was much less chaotic than anywhere else. Harry and Hermione were being pains in the ass with Harry's trial and Hermione trying to be supportive but not too supportive so Harry wouldn't get the wrong idea. Ron was a nervous wreck and Ginny had looked for him multiple times to find him with his tongue down Katie's throat just to distract himself from his best friend being on trial. Malfoy was wandering the halls like he owned the place. Luna was in her own little world most of the time. Sharing a dorm with Katie was awkward, and Lavender barely talked to anybody. Neville seemed to be the only sane one, but he'd been fussing over Lavender.

She wished everyone would just bloody go home.

So she had.

Home wasn't the best, either, but it was quiet. She could stay in her room and keep to herself. She could walk through the garden and fly around and just breathe . But she hadn't left the house in a few days, and she'd agreed to go to Diagon Alley just to get her mom off her back.

There was no real reason for her to go, but Pig was running a little low on treats, so it wouldn't hurt to stop into Eeylops.

And now here she was, having lunch with a girl she'd met ten minutes ago. A girl who was flirting with her. A girl who she suddenly found she maybe wouldn't mind flirting back with. She really never had questioned any kind of attraction to girls. Sure, she'd found them pretty, but… girls were pretty, right? When they dressed up or put on makeup, they were told they looked beautiful by everyone. It just happened to be true. But here was Lia, in a plain long sleeved shirt and jeans, messy hair, an accent she could listen to for hours, mesmerizing baby blue eyes, and… yeah, maybe she was beautiful, too. She definitely made Ginny feel… some sort of way. Like maybe everything wasn't hopeless. Even Dean hadn't flirted with her like this. The conversation they'd already had was… easy.

"So why did you like Harry?" Lia asked as they took their seats and Lia ordered them butterbeers.

Ginny had sat down in the booth across from her and laughed. "We're back on this again?"

"What?! I'm interested. I mean, girls have been fawning over him in the paper. It's ridiculous, if you ask me. He just fought a war and they can't wait a little bit before-" She cleared her throat. "Sorry. Probably not the best thing to talk about right now, yeah?"

"No, it's… it's fine," Ginny started. "I've kind of gotten used to it at this point. Having a crush on the Chosen One isn't the easiest thing in the world. But I met him his first day onto the platform, and I thought he was cute, even back then. I remember going home that night and just… smiling into my pillow. I guess you could say he was my first real crush, you know? I was, what, barely ten? I think it was just kind of a relief seeing a boy that wasn't my brother, too. Maybe I was just tired of seeing gingers," she smiled, and Lia returned it.

"You said you dated someone else, though, right? Did you still have a crush on Harry, then, and you were just using him to try to get over it?"

"Not entirely. Maybe Michael? I was with him in fourth year for a bit, but that never really… we barely kissed. It felt weird. And then I dated Dean in fifth year. I did like Dean. He's really sweet and we went on a few dates and he was a great kisser, but it just seemed like after a while, the… spark was gone."

"So a good kisser? That's important to you?" Lia teased, and Ginny found herself blushing.

"All that and that's what you're focusing on?!" Ginny huffed out. Lia grinned as their drinks were delivered to the table.

"Just making a list, that's all." She swiped some of the whipped cream off the top and sucked it off her finger, something Ginny found her eyes drawn to. Would it be any different, kissing a girl? Plus, Dean was much taller than her. Lia was only a little bit taller than her - maybe an inch or so if that? She hadn't really paid attention when she kissed Harry, but… she hated that the idea of kissing this girl she just met was quickly planting its way into her brain. What would it prove? What good would it do? The last thing she needed to be doing was dating right now, but was she desperate enough to indulge the first person that showed any interest in her? "Something you're thinking about?" Lia's question pulled her out of her thoughts before she could get too critical of herself.

"Something I'm trying not to think about, actually."

"Well, we were talking about Dean." Lia pulled a menu out of the holder and started to look over at it, though she knew what she wanted. She always got the cottage pie. She took a sip of her butterbeer, watching Ginny carefully across the table. She hadn't meant to make a show with the whipped cream, but the way that Ginny's eyes followed, she was definitely interested. Perhaps a little reserved, but curious. She could work with curious. "And how great of a kisser he is," she continued, putting her mug down.

"I believe I ended on the fact that the spark was just gone, actually."

"Right, right," Lia smirked before turning serious again. "That can happen with anyone, Ginny. It's nothing to do with you. Or him. Also you're sixteen. You're not supposed to end up with the love of your life right now."

"But Harry-"

"Harry and Hermione have been through a lot that probably brought them closer together than they normally would have been by now, don't you think? Their situation's a little different than yours. You've got plenty of time to worry about who's your type and who's not. Plus, there are a ton of people outside of Hogwarts. Besides me - don't give me that look."

"I just feel like everyone I know is pairing off and I'm just…"

"Well, you're the youngest. Give it a year and you'll have met someone by then, I'm sure."

"I know," Ginny sighed, taking a few sips of her drink and setting the menu down. "It's not just the relationship aspect of it, though, it's… having well… a friend, I guess? I mean, don't get me wrong, I love Luna to death but she's not good at really, um… listening like I need her to sometimes. It's really weird being at Hogwarts. There aren't a lot of people there for the summer, and even at home, it's just Mum, Dad, George, Percy, and I. And it's… after…"

Lia quickly reached over to rest her hand on Ginny's and remembered how much she'd cried herself when she saw Fred's name in the paper of people who had been lost in the war. "Hey, I said we don't have to talk about it. If you're not comfortable-"

"It's just so unfair. It makes me so bloody angry to think about it. Just… he did nothing wrong." She looked at their hands briefly. "He was just trying to help and now our whole family's in shambles because we never thought…" Ginny took a deep breath to calm herself as the waiter came over to take their orders. She figured fish and chips would be safe. "I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't be talking to you about all this."

"You can if you want. I just… I know I can't do much to help."

"I've accepted it. There's nothing else to do, really. I just hate it. And… and Remus and Tonks and everyone else we lost. It felt like a dream for a while, you know. Until the funeral. That's kind of when everything got real." Hesitantly, Ginny turned her hand over, taking Lia's fingers into her own. It was comforting if nothing else. "Voldemort… he possessed me in my first year, and… I don't remember a lot of it anymore, but what I do remember was just the anger I felt. I was always angry, always scared. It's like that's coming back even though he's gone."

"Wait… I thought he… didn't he take you into the Chamber?"

"You knew?"

"Word spreads around, I suppose. We were all kind of out of the loop in that whole situation. Teachers wouldn't talk about it, so that started a lot of the gossip, but I remember hearing your name."

Ginny nodded stiffly. "He… I can't explain it very well, but he… he made me do things. The writing on the walls, that was me. The… the roosters. That was me. I didn't know I was doing any of it until I was washing the blood off my hands, and…" She quickly wiped the tears that had fallen down her face. This was the most depressing lunch she'd ever been to, but in some ways, she did feel better saying it all out loud. "Harry saved my life down there. I… well, that certainly didn't help my crush."

"I can't imagine. Are you… okay?"

Ginny frowned. "What do you mean?"

"You were… you just casually mentioned being possessed, Ginny. People don't just snap back from that."

"I… I think so. Like I said, I don't remember most of it, so I can't really… most of first year just comes in bits and pieces. And I think it's probably better that way at this point. I don't want to think about it. All that probably came out of it was an unhealthy crush on Harry and trying to convince myself that he saved me because he was in love with me or something. I've never really thought about it, but… I think that's where it came from. And the fact that he's attractive. And good at Quidditch. Dean wasn't any good at Quidditch." Ginny sighed, resting her cheek in her free hand. "I suppose I'm just rubbish at finding partners, aren't I?"

Running her thumb over Ginny's palm, Lia responded softly. "I don't think you give yourself nearly enough credit."

One the food came, Lia pulled her hand from Ginny's so they could eat, carefully guiding their conversation to lighter topics, like pets and music ("Wait, so you don't know any Muggle music? Like, at all? Oh my God, you've got to listen to the Spice Girls. And Britney Spears! She's American!"), and Ginny found her talking more about herself than she had in a while. It had been so long since she'd had to introduce herself to someone, but it was an incredibly welcome distraction to all the bad thoughts that had been taking over lately. Having lunch with Lia in Diagon Alley felt like… normal. Like the world she'd been trying to block out had started to open up.

Once they were done and Lia had insisted on paying, she checked her watch with a frown. "I've got to get back to work."

"Oh. Right. Sorry, I didn't mean to keep you." Ginny slumped in her seat, but Lia just gave her a soft smile.

"Didn't you, em, leave Pig's treats? I thought I saw them on the counter still."

"I guess I did, didn't I?" Ginny grinned back, sliding up out of the booth as Lia did the same. "Thank you, by the way," she started as they walked out the front door and started in the direction of Eeylops. "For letting me have a normal lunch. And a normal conversation."

"Anytime. And I mean it. Really." Lia nudged Ginny's shoulder with hers just to see her smile again.

It didn't take them long to go back, for Lia to clock back in and hand Ginny the treats, but Ginny found herself lingering at the door, not wanting to leave. Not wanting to go back home.

"You should bring Pig by next time. Maybe we can set up a playdate between him and Diana," Lia offered, mostly to gauge Ginny's reaction.

"Next time? Oh. Yeah. Absolutely. And… we could get lunch again?"

"Or dinner. Or… you could see me when I'm not working too, you know. Actually, do you know how to use a telephone?"

"Mum does, I'm pretty sure. Why?"

Lia smiled, pulling out a piece of paper from her desk and scribbling a number down on it. "Well, it's pretty simple if you can find one. All you have to do is pick up the receiver part - that's the thing that comes off, connected by the little swirly wire - and press the numbers in this order. That's the most important part. And then you hold it up to your ear and you can talk to me."

Ginny took the paper from Lia's fingers and looked at it for a moment, biting her lip. "This… this is your telephone number?"

"Mmhmm! And that's my cell phone, so no matter where I am, you should be able to reach me. Unless I'm here, since Muggle technology doesn't work."

"Is that different from a regular telephone?"

Lia laughed a little bit, honestly excited about getting to show Ginny essentially an entire world. "It's just portable. Hang on." She crossed the store back to the desk and pulled it out of the drawer. "I keep it turned off at work so it's not trying to search for a signal, but yeah! Here."

Ginny looked at the small device in her hand, turning it over a couple times. "And this lets you communicate instantly with someone?"

"It does! Which is why I think it's mad that you all still use owls. That can take days and it's exhausting for the birds. There's got to be some other way, though I suppose there's Floo, but that's only if you're near a registered fireplace and the other person knows where you are. And I can't imagine you'd want me just Apparating to where I think you might be at any point in the day without letting you know first!"

"What are the little letters for?"

"Oh, those are for texting if you don't want to call. Just to send a little message. I'm not the best at it and it takes a really long time, so I don't use it very often."

"How does it work?"

Lia shrugged. "Beats me," she said as Ginny handed it back. "But I get off at six when I'm working if you… wanted to call after that. I'm usually home by quarter past."

Ginny was blushing again. "Okay, yeah. Yeah, I'll… I'll call you, I guess? Feels weird to say."

"You'll get used to it."

The blush didn't fade from Ginny's face until she was back home, in her room, and staring at the phone number Lia had written down for her. Why did she already want to call her? She knew it wouldn't work, but she knew she needed to sort out her feelings first before she jumped into anything, as tempting as it was. Having someone flirt with her without her even showing any interest in them was exciting. Strange, but exciting. In just a couple hours, Lia had become the best part of the past year. The longest she'd been happy in months. That had to be it, right? Ginny was clinging to her like Ron was clinging to Katie. Like Harry was clinging to Hermione. There was no way that someone she'd just met could have that much of an effect on her. Then again, how many new people had she met recently?

She looked at the phone number again. There wouldn't be any harm, right? It's not like calling her or seeing her again would mean they were together. She could barely even comprehend what it would be like to have a girlfriend instead of a boyfriend, but the thought didn't make her shudder. Would it be easier? Dean and Michael had both had a hard time reading her sometimes - could Lia do it better?

Not to mention all the… stuff past kissing. Not much ever really happened with Dean but that didn't mean she hadn't thought about it. But she was definitely attracted to boys. Would she be attracted to Lia the same way? What if she wasn't and she wouldn't even know until they got there? If they got there?

Ginny groaned, leaning her head back on the pillow and pressing her hands into her eyes. She shouldn't be thinking about sex when she hadn't even agreed to a date, but she couldn't help it. She needed to figure the whole "attraction" thing out. The last thing she wanted to do would be to lead Lia on and then they get to the kissing and she couldn't do it. She looked down at her own body - she knew what to do with herself, but… no, she didn't need to be thinking that far. She wasn't focused on sex; she was focused on… attraction. Right.

Maybe there was a way she could do both.

She hated stealing, especially from her brothers, but there was something she knew was in George's possession, somewhere in his room, that normally, she tried to forget about. She'd never seen it, but she'd overheard them talking about it a couple years ago. A Muggle magazine that, from what she understood, only had pictures of women in various stages of nakedness. She was embarrassed to have even remembered, but at the time, she thought it was disgusting and didn't understand why anyone would enjoy looking at pictures of naked women. Now, however, maybe she'd get the appeal. The question was how to get it. She couldn't use magic since she was underage, so she'd have to do it the hard way.

George had tried to get into a schedule during the day, and it seemed to have helped him find some normalcy, too. It was strange, just being at the house without Fred, but here, they could just pretend like he was at school for whatever reason, or on a vacation. Ginny really didn't like taking advantage of George's coping, but knowing where he was probably going to be throughout the day made this plan a little easier.

After dinner, where she'd tried not to act too nervous, she waited patiently in her room, hugging a pillow until she heard the shower turn on. She had about fifteen minutes. She hadn't been in George's room since the funeral, and was shocked that he was even able to sleep in there at all. Fred's bed hadn't been made yet. There were clothes still all over the place, hung over the headboard and sitting on the dresser. George hadn't touched any of it, and it really did feel like he was still there. She couldn't touch any of it, either. She wouldn't.

What she didn't mind digging through, even though she knew she might regret it, were George's things. She tried not to think about it too much and look through his nightstand quickly, since she was certain there would be some things in there she most certainly didn't want to see. It didn't take long before she moved a couple of old textbooks to reveal a magazine with "Playboy" stamped across the cover and an image of a woman that made her want to forget the entire thing. She was pretty, but too posed. Too fake. Were all of them like this?

She knew there wasn't much time left, so she rolled it up and trudged back to her room. Maybe some of the other pictures were better. Ginny settled down on her bed, legs crossed with the magazine resting on top of them. "Merlin help me," she muttered, knowing that the inside was probably worse than the outside, and started to flip through it. Most of them just looked silly with these poses, but she did find her eyes lingering on a couple of them, glancing down to a particularly aesthetically pleasing set of breasts. Bigger than her own. Nice to look at. Then again, they were supposed to be, weren't they? That was the whole point of breasts. She even dared herself to pull out the centerfold and turn the magazine for a good look. She was smaller than the first one, skinnier, but had an ass that made Ginny feel a tingle of something .

She swallowed, reluctantly folding up the picture to keep going. An audible gasp left her lips as the next page revealed a different girl, a blonde, in lingerie. It was red and lacy and had so many straps and buttons that she briefly wondered how complicated something like that would be to get on before she realized she didn't care at all. It wasn't completely see-through, but didn't leave much to the imagination and Ginny found herself desperately wishing this were a Wizarding magazine and the picture was moving because her brain replaced the woman with Lia and she suddenly felt very hot, shifting on the bed to alleviate some of the too-sudden discomfort.

Oh.

"You shouldn't let Mum catch you looking at something like that, you know."

Whatever she'd been thinking about immediately left her brain at the sound of George's voice at the door - why hadn't she closed it?! - and the magazine went flying across the room, as if throwing it would help. When had she even heard the shower turn off?

"Hey! Careful with that!" George was quick to summon it back to his hands. "It's the only one I've got."

Ginny's eyes were wide, her brain panicking at the thought of her brother stumbling upon her in any state of arousal. She must be red. Was she breathing heavy? Her heart was definitely thumping in her chest and the adrenaline hadn't helped. "I-I…" she tried to start.

"Do you even want me to ask?"

Ginny shook her head quickly, afraid to take her eyes off George just in case he became more suspicious. Instead of leaving, though, he frowned a little, looked down at the magazine, then back up to her.

"You know, if you're… if you feel like… you don't need to look like these women, Gin, if that's what's bothering you. This is just… it's all for show, really. You know that, right? You're already beautiful."

Ginny's shoulders relaxed, astonishingly touched that George would even consider that a possibility, and she found herself smiling. "Thank you. I… it wasn't what I was… trying to do, but… thank you. No one's called me beautiful in a while, so it's a good reminder."

"Well, you are. There. Now you've heard it twice. I can fly a banner off the top of the house, too, if it'll make you feel better."

"No, no! Please don't do that," she laughed. "It's fine. I just…" Would George be able to help? She knew he wouldn't judge her for anything, and he was definitely the safest person to talk to about anything at the moment. "Some of them were… attractive," she finally whispered, tearing her eyes back down to her blanket as she felt her cheeks redden in embarrassment again.

"Ah… well, that's a lot easier, then. What's the problem?"

When she looked back up, he was grinning. "I… I just didn't know if… I've ever thought that before, so I was, um…"

"Testing the waters?"

"Yeah."

George took a deep breath. "I'm going to just pretend we didn't have this conversation because I don't want to think about my baby sister doing anything involved with any of this, but…" he tossed the magazine back, and Ginny awkwardly reached out to catch it, "this will definitely help you figure it out. It's… not quite the same, though, just so you know. Obviously. Having a real girl in front of you is much better. So… just keep that in mind if you're, uh… still not sure." He was looking around the room as he spoke, just as awkward about this whole situation as she was, but it was clear he was trying to be supportive, which made her feel a lot better.

"I… figured as much," Ginny muttered.

"You've got someone in mind?" She nodded. "Good. Well, don't overthink it, okay? It's not a bad thing. Just means you've got twice as many options as the rest of us. Harry's never going to let you hear the end of it, though."

That pulled a laugh from her as she shook her head. "I definitely don't plan on telling him anytime soon. But… thank you. I thought for a moment that I'd just been doing it wrong this whole time. Just… don't tell anyone, okay? I'm not… ready for anyone to know."

"Except whatever girl's caught your attention?" George smirked.

"Yeah." Ginny exhaled through a soft smile. "Yeah, maybe her."

"Don't worry, Gin. Secret's safe with me."